Mark Patton, best known for his portrayal of Jesse Walsh in "Nightmare on Elm Street 2" is facing a health-related setback and has reached out to his fans to pull him out of distress. A GoFundMe was created for the movie star over the weekend, and collections have surpassed the set amount by twice, and counting.

Patton's manager Peter Valderrama started the fundraising campaign and offered a lengthy explanation about the actor's ordeal. The actor had scheduled a meet and greet for fans, which he was looking forward to but had to cancel it after his health took a drastic turn, as per Valderrama.

The actor had been ill for a while and at first, they believed it to be COVID-19 after-effects. "But now it is quite clearly AIDS-related ailments that he is managing," Valderrama wrote on the actor's behalf. Patton's results came back positive for HIV in 1999, according to an interview with HIV+ magazine.

The actor is currently placed at a hospital in Mexico, which is overrun with COVID patients, and the funds will majorly be used to transport him to an American hospital in the country.

The campaign also featured Patton's statement where he requested the horror community to come together to help him seek and pay for better care. Read his statement below.

"Basically I am asking for help I will not be embarrassed. I just want to be healthy and at home with family. I need to move to American Hospital in Mexico where they can give me the treatment I desperately need. The American Hospital is $300 dollars a day with nurses, doctors and meds. The Mexican hospital is overwhelmed with COVID and I am too compromised to remain here," his statement reads.

"I feel very stupid for being overly optimistic. I thought I would be flying to Chicago today but I promise that when I am well enough to fly to the USA I will. I have faced these medical challenges before and I know I have a lot of fight left in me- but the last few years have been crippling for me financially. I have always lived Month to month and I have been struggling with medical visits since October. If anyone is able to contribute it would mean a life-saving option for me to be recovering in a place that can cater to my condition. Thank you all," he wrote, signing off the plea with "Love, Mark."

1,100 people have already donated to the campaign, which had requested $18,000. At the time of this writing, $36,568 has been raised for Patton's treatment.

An awareness event organised on the eve of the 'World AIDS Day' at Khalpara area in Siliguri on November 30, 2021
AFP / Diptendu DUTTA
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