Meningitis B Survivor to Tell His Story at University of Maryland on Wednesday; Will Encourage Students to Lobby for Vaccine That Princeton is Now Trying

College Park, MD, November 19, 2013 --(PR.com)-- Journalist and book author Andy Marso, who contracted meningitis B as a college student in 2004, will talk about his struggle for survival and the long road back to a normal life at noon, Wednesday, Nov. 20, in the Roberts Conference Room at Knight Hall on the University of Maryland campus. He will be available for interviews Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning.

Marso’ book, “Worth the Pain: How Meningitis Nearly Killed Me - Then Changed My Life for the Better,” has just been published by Kansas City Star Books. He contracted meningitis B while an undergraduate at the University of Kansas. The disease cost Marso parts of all four of his limbs. Meningitis B is the strain that Princeton University is currently trying to contain.

As a reporter in Kansas, Marso covers state government for the Topeka Capital Journal. He is a 2011 graduate of UMD's master's in journalism program and worked on the Washington Post's sports desk while attending school.

“I’ll be talking about my personal experience, but I also want to address why college students are more susceptible to the infection and talk about the special vaccine, Bexsero, that's being shipped to Princeton, despite having not yet been approved in the United States,” Marso said. “Based on my experience, I think college kids across the country, not just where there's an active outbreak, should be clamoring for access to this shot.”

Contact: Andy Marso, 785-865-9753, or email andrewmarso@gmail.com