LOVELAND, Ohio — A Loveland woman with stage 4 colon cancer has just one wish: to have her family by her side in her final days. Finally, after months, her father's emergency visa has been approved.
At just 33 years old, Bita Bagge was living out her dreams as a lead scientist at GE Aerospace who had just gained U.S. citizenship.
“Bita, to me, represents the best of humanity,” said her husband, Rob Bagge.
Then, life took an unexpected turn. Doctors diagnosed Bita with cancer in August.
“It’s been pretty rapid. Her cancer hasn’t responded to the first line chemotherapy and even the targeted chemotherapy,” Rob said. “It’s been hell. I just want to do something for her.”
Bita’s sister, Pegah Khorasai, was in her first weeks of classes at Arizona State University when she got the news of her sister’s diagnosis.
“There is no cure. There is no treatment for her, unfortunately,” Khorasai said.
Khorasai traveled to Cincinnati to be with her sister. Bita sought an emergency non-immigrant U.S. visa for her parents so they could all be together in her final days.
“My mother got her visa immediately, but my father, he didn’t,” Khorasai said.
“There’s no reason why it should be stalled,” Rob said. “We provided all the documentation. We provided the doctor’s letter for the emergency visa.”
Khorasai read some of the emails she received regarding their father’s visa.
“Unfortunately, citizens of Iran are subject to additional screening for reason of national security. Females clear much more quickly than males,” the email said in part.
Now, as Bita enters hospice care, her only wish is to see her father one last time. Her family hoped sharing their story could help bring awareness and expedite her father’s security clearance knowing she doesn’t have much time left.
“I lost hope today,” Rob said. “If you can reach out to your congressman, senator, just whoever can help to speed this process up.”
WCPO reached out to Sens. Sherrod Brown and JD Vance, as well as Rep. Greg Landsman. We were able to connect the family to Landsman and Rep. Brad Wenstrup's offices, which directed the family on how to submit a casework request and detailed who to call to try to expedite the process.
Bita's sister said Monday their father's visa was finally approved, meaning he can come to the U.S. to be with his daughter.
In the meantime, Bita’s husband set up a GoFundMe page to help with her medical expenses.
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