David Faughn is honored to be nominated for the 2019 Eagle Rare Life Award. As a nominee, he is in the running to win $50,000 for the NUBPL Foundation to help fund a potentially life-saving treatment breakthrough for patients battling mitochondrial complex 1 deficiency disorder, NUBPL gene. To help him win, David needs your vote – just a simple click of a button with no sign-in or information required. One click; that’s it!

Read David’s full nomination written and submitted by Regan Blevins:

What began as a father’s desperate pursuit of a diagnosis for his daughter’s mysterious disease has evolved into David Faughn’s life-long commitment to pioneering medical research and promoting legislation to ensure medical coverage for affected patients.

David Faughn embodies character. Of the many characteristics encapsulated in the Eagle Rare Life Award, character stands out as all- encompassing. And Dave is truly a living example of each. His relentless devotion to finding a diagnosis and cure for his daughter’s rare genetic disease, NUBPL, named for the mutated gene causing her cerebellar atrophy, is testament to his immeasurable dedication. Indeed, his devotion inspired him to found the nonprofit, NUBPL Foundation, to raise awareness, network with families with similar diagnoses, and fund research. Dave exudes courage in coping with his only child’s diagnosed rare genetic disease of unknown prognosis. While many would resign to grieve this powerlessness, Dave has risen above his own circumstances, battling endless roadblocks by insurance companies and state legislation alike for the sake of his precious Katherine. His fight gave way to lobbying and co-authoring legislation mandating insurance coverage of a particular therapy, “mito cocktail”, rendering his home state of Kentucky the first in the U.S to do so, benefiting hundreds of families affected by some of the hundreds of known mitochondrial mutations effecting disease. Dave is undeniably both leader and hero to families in Kentucky and beyond who are touched by mitochondrial disease. Survival is a word all too close to Dave’s family’s heart. His tireless advocacy will no doubt one day ensure the survival of many.

Dave’s main mission is to save his daughter’s life. When top neurologists were stumped by his little girl Katherine Belle’s unusual brain MRI, Dave asked, “Is there any hope?” Facing the gravest of answers from a baffled medical community, he resolved to fight. He founded NUBPL Foundation, the namesake nonprofit of the mutated gene it supports. Dave’s personal mission has evolved from one with the singular goal of saving his child, to the global mission of his nonprofit: to raise awareness and fund research toward the development of life-saving, life-enhancing treatments and a cure for NUBPL, mitochondrial complex 1 deficiency disorder.

Dave’s advocacy extends well beyond his own family. He helped hundreds of children in Kentucky suffering from mitochondrial diseases acquire coverage for the only medication known to mitigate their progressive and life-altering symptoms. Children from families forced each month to choose between spending hundreds for their survival or covering rent. When insurance denied coverage for treatment, Dave, a civil litigator, took his fight to the Kentucky General Assembly. In 2016, Kentucky became the first and only state in the union to legislatively require health insurers to cover mito cocktails. Understanding the need for greater awareness, research funding, and patient community support, he and wife co-founded the NUBPL Foundation. Under David’s leadership and devotion to helping families on a similar path, newly diagnosed NUBPL patients, clinicians, and geneticists are finding them and joining a growing global community. David’s efforts ignite hope in NUBPL families around the world.

For all Dave’s admirable qualities, his greatest is undeniably the wonderful father he is. His love for his child transcends to his every action. Perhaps no better illustrated than in his own words:

“Laughter and joy are Katherine’s currency. She spends them freely. I am more alive than I have ever been. I feel more deeply than I’ve ever felt. I see genuine goodness in people around me, in friends, family and complete strangers. People who reach out to lift our spirits and to help us practically and emotionally. I see my daughter in all children and love them for it.”

In 2017, the NUBPL Foundation partnered with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) for their first precision medicine drug discovery and repurposing project with the purpose and hope of delivering a treatment breakthrough for patients. CHOP is a world-renowned leader in groundbreaking pediatric medicine. Douglas Wallace, director of the Center for Mitochondrial and Epigenomic Medicine at CHOP, discovered the first disease-causing mitochondrial gene mutation in a human. Today, an estimated 80,000 Americans are afflicted with mitochondrial disease. While many nuclear genes have been identified to effect mitochondrial disease, the NUBPL gene was recently pinpointed as a critical player in the metastasis of the world’s second-leading cancer killer, colorectal cancer. NUBPL’s role in Parkinson’s disease is yet another identified initiative to better understand the gene. While Katherine’s particular disease is rare, CHOP’s research project undoubtedly has the potential to trigger a far-reaching ripple effect in medical discovery. But medical research is costly. NUBPL Foundation is well over the halfway point in raising the $179,000 needed for this project. $50,000 would nearly get them the funding they need for this critical research.

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