Meet Trey Garczynski: the boy living with Mitchell Syndrome

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (WDAM) - Trey Garczynski is a 16-year-old boy living with a disease so rare that less than 20 people worldwide have ever been diagnosed.

The symptoms started when Garczynski was 11 years old.

“I was just walking around, but just a few minutes later, my hearing just went black,” said Garczynski. “A minute later, it came back just for one second, and then it went out again. And when I came home, I couldn’t hear nothing.”

Trey’s parents started looking for the cause. What they found was something none of them expected.

“At the time when the neurologist told us, told us there were only two people in the world,” said Meredith Garczynski, Trey’s mother. “We know, as of today, there have been 17 cases; six have passed away.”

Trey was diagnosed with Mitchell Syndrome, a neurological disease. It can affect the patient’s hearing, eyesight, digestive system and movement.

Trey and his family, however, did not let the diagnosis get them down.

Trey said he thinks positively daily and looks forward to the future without getting stuck in the past.

Through the ups and downs of the past few years, Trey and his family have been optimistic, sharing their story to raise awareness.

Trey’s family has since connected with other families going through the same thing - only 11 people left in the world with Mitchell Syndrome.

You can see their story and learn more about Trey here: https://www.mitchellandfriends.org/

If you would like to donate to raise funding to fight Mitchell Syndrome, click here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/Mitchellsyndromereseach

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