A 15-year-old high school freshman is currently in a hospital dealing with severe repercussions from food poisoning after consuming McDonald’s Quarter Pounder hamburgers on three separate occasions in the weeks leading up to a dangerous E. coli outbreak.

Kamberlyn Bowler, who resides in Grand Junction, Colorado, was urgently transported 250 miles to a hospital near Denver in mid-October, where she underwent dialysis for ten days in a bid to preserve her kidney function.

She is among more than 75 individuals who have fallen ill, with 22 requiring hospitalization during the outbreak that has locally been traced back to contaminated onions. In Mesa County, where Kamberlyn lives, 11 people have reported illness and one individual has tragically lost their life. Health officials at the federal level have indicated that slivered onions used in the hamburgers are likely culprits in this outbreak.

This situation has left Kamberlyn’s mother, Brittany Randall, deeply concerned about her daughter’s wellbeing and alarmed that a simple burger could lead to such serious health issues.

“It’s alarming to realize that we trust these foods to be safe and nutritious, and yet they can cause such harm,” Randall expressed.

In light of these events, she is considering legal action against the fast-food chain after Kamberlyn tested positive for the E. coli O157:H7 strain linked to the outbreak.

Medical experts have explained that this strain produces a harmful toxin that can trigger a severe kidney complication called hemolytic uremic syndrome. Many children who contract this syndrome are hospitalized for extended periods and some may ultimately need kidney transplants, according to Dr. Myda Khalid, a kidney specialist at Riley Hospital for Children in Indiana, who is not involved in Kamberlyn’s case.

“Timing is crucial,” Khalid commented. “We have to manage this situation with extreme care and get through this critical period.”

While the condition can be life-threatening, most children do recover, she noted.

Kamberlyn recounted that she enjoyed eating McDonald’s Quarter Pounders with cheese, extra pickles, and onions three times between September 27 and October 8. She found the burgers convenient to grab during football halftime breaks and while attending a softball game at school.

She began feeling ill shortly afterward, suffering from a fever, vomiting, diarrhea, and severe abdominal cramps.

“I was unable to get out of bed,” she remembered. “I couldn’t eat or drink anything; I was living on Popsicles. I felt really awful.”

Randall, a jail guard and mother of three older children, initially thought her youngest daughter might be dealing with the flu. However, concerns escalated when Kamberlyn texted her with alarming symptoms such as blood in her stool and urine, accompanied by vomiting blood.

On October 11, she visited a local hospital, where doctors suspected a stomach bug and sent her home with advice to keep hydrated. By October 17, with no signs of improvement, she returned to the emergency room, where tests revealed acute kidney failure, according to her mother.

She was subsequently transported to Children’s Hospital Colorado in Aurora, near Denver, where she remains hospitalized as of Tuesday.

Randall voiced her worries about her daughter’s long-term health and the mounting medical expenses.

“The hospital bills are piling up,” she shared. “As a single mother, I really don’t know how I’ll handle the costs ahead, and I am uncertain about what the future holds.”