Fort Carson Army Wife died before London trip to save her

Army wife dies before chance at experimental treatment in London
The Gazette
By Garrison Wells
December 28, 2013

Melissa Klein, 21, rests on a couch Friday, Nov. 29, 2013, inside her Fort Carson home. Klein suffered from mitochondrial neurogastrointestinal encephalopathy, a rare genetic disorder with no known cure. She died from complications of the disease on Friday. Melissa received life-sustaining fats, carbohydrates and proteins through a port in her chest. The thought of dying "is terrifying", she had told The Gazette

When Melissa Klein died, she was holding her husband's hand.

John Klein was there at the beginning.

He was there at the end.

She died like she lived, fighting, wrestling, arguing with the rare genetic condition that threatened her daily.

Melissa died at about 10:30 p.m. Friday at Memorial Hospital from complications following surgery to remove a port in her chest that had become infected, John said.

The port was her lifeline, through which she received a mix of fats, carbohydrates and proteins.

The Army wife's plight was described in a series of Gazette stories and blogs in recent weeks.

"Her heart stopped three times," John said. "She was resuscitated. She was asleep through all of it and it was just going to keep happening and the time between resuscitations was just getting shorter."
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