It's been a rough past year for Sonny Mayo, the guitarist who has played with such bands as Sevendust, Snot and (hed) p.e. Mayo suffered a heart attack last summer and learned that he had a genetic coronary disease. Just this past January, Mayo suffered a second heart attack, and he's now hoping to receive a medical treatment that is not covered by his insurance. As such, Mayo has launched a GoFundMe campaign, with the hope of raising the funds needed for his treatment.

"On July 21, 2016, five days after my 45th birthday, I had a heart attack," writes Mayo. "I went to the hospital and had an angiogram where it was discovered that I have genetic coronary artery disease. They found that I had four blockages in arteries around my heart. One of which blocked 90 percent of my right artery! They placed stents to open the blockages and I began a regimen of medications to try and prevent future blockages."

He adds, "On Jan. 22, 2018, a few days after having a severe case of the flu, I felt extreme pain in my chest and both of my arms went numb. I knew I was having another heart attack. I rushed to the hospital and had emergency angioplasty. My cardiologist determined that the flu caused an inflammatory response in my heart and arteries which then caused occlusions around two of the stents, blocking blood flow. This caused a blood clot to form and block 100% of my right artery. They placed ANOTHER stent, saving my life again. I am grateful, yet I am deeply concerned."

Mayo is 16 years sober and has lived with a healthier plant-based diet over the past five years, but even with the clean lifestyle, he is still facing heart issues. He explains, "My goal is to receive allogeneic mesenchymal adult stem cells to treat the damage and inflammation in my arteries and my heart. Unfortunately, the treatment is not covered by insurance."

For those interested, Mayo is seeking to raise $33,000. At press time, the GoFundMe campaign had already hit $11,000 of that amount, but the need to reach the mark is still there. If you wish to help Mayo in his treatment, you may do so here.

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