Chanthy is a 28-year-old mom with a daughter and a son who are both primary school students. She and her husband are laborers, working hard to make enough to support their family’s needs. When not caring for her children, she likes to listen to news and music on the radio.
Two year ago, Chanthy developed a pterygium in her right eye, causing her irritation, burning in the eye, unsightly appearance, occasional pain. Pterygiums are non-cancerous growths of the conjunctiva, a mucous layer that lubricates the eye. The growths occur when the conjunctiva is exposed to excessive sun damage and the cells grow abnormally over the pupil.
When Chanthy learned about our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Centre, she traveled for two and a half hours with her husband hoping for treatment. Chanthy needs a surgical procedure to remove the abnormal conjunctiva from the cornea surface and replace it with a conjunctival graft to prevent recurrence. The total cost of her procedure is $216. This covers medications, supplies, and inpatient care for two days. The procedure is scheduled for January 12th.
She told us, “I hope after surgery my eye gets better and I can go back to work without worrying about my eye anymore.”