Showing all patients at Nazareth Hospital

Lilian is a 25-year-old woman who works as a helper for another family. A mother of two young children, she is raising them alone, since she and her husband are separated. She says that despite struggling to sustain them, she loves them a lot. Six years ago, Lilian began to experience troubling symptoms, including a swollen neck, snoring, difficulty breathing especially at night and feeling the weight of a growth in her neck. She has also been experiencing low self-esteem due to the neck swelling. She was diagnosed with large Right Multinodular Goiter, and needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Lillian could not go to the hospital for lack of money until one of her neighbours who had been supported through the Watsi program brought her to Nazareth Hospital for possible support. She was advised to have an ultrasound scan and thyroid function tests. For three months, she did not return to Nazareth, until last week when she had finally managed to raise money for the tests. Now our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Lilian receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on October 24th at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $657, and she and her family need help raising money. Lilian is very optimistic and says, “Now I have the results and I am very hopeful that the sponsors will answer to my plea, so that I can regain my normal life, self-esteem and take care of my small children.”

Edith is a 49-year-old mother from Kenya. To support their four children, she works as a homemaker, and her husband works as a driver. She shares that her husband earns enough to support their family's basic needs. As Edith does her family chores, she enjoys socializing with friends and neighbors. Two months ago, Edith began to experience troubling symptoms, including neck swelling. After seeking medical attention at a hospital, she was diagnosed with thyroid hyperplasia, a condition that leads to thyroid enlargement. In order to alleviate her symptoms and prevent them from worsening, she must undergo thyroid surgery. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Edith receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on August 15th at our medical partner's care center. During this procedure, surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. The surgery will cost $657, which she and her family need help raising. Edith shares, “The doctor said that with this surgery, this problem will be solved. I kindly request help so that I can be operated on soon. I also pray that the surgery will go on well.”

Margaret's smile lights up the room. She is a 41-year-old small scale farmer who is married and has one child. Her husband worked as a taxi driver, but, unfortunately, he lost his job due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Three years ago, Margaret began experiencing troubling symptoms including difficulty swallowing, throat soreness and voice changes. Over time, her symptoms worsened, so she visited a local hospital for further evaluation. She was diagnosed with a multinodular goiter, or an abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland. A thyroidectomy was recommended to treat her condition. If left untreated, the goiter will continue to grow, which could lead to troubling complications like difficulty breathing, heart problems, thyrotoxicosis, or trachea obstruction. Fortunately, our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), is helping Margaret receive treatment. On December 28th, she will undergo a thyroidectomy at AMH's care center, where surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. Now, she and her family need help raising $657 to fund her procedure and care. Margaret shared, "this problem has affected my daily work and life for a long time, and now I worry I am becoming a bother even to my husband. I am therefore kindly asking for assistance to have this surgery so that I can regain my health."

Jane is a 49-year-old farmer and a married mother of four children. She takes care of their home and along with her husband they do small-scale farming. Neither of them are formally employed. About one year ago, Jane began to experience troubling symptoms, including on-and-off severe headaches and, as of two months ago, neck swelling. She was diagnosed with multinodular goiter and needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMH), is helping Jane receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on September 27th at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $657, and she and her family need help raising money. “I am so worried because the swelling on my neck is increasing and this may affect my life more. I kindly request to be helped; we cannot get that kind of money required for surgery. I will be very grateful if I am assisted so that I can continue with my normal life and continue serving my family and be out socializing with friends,” said Jane.

Edith is a hardworking laborer from Kiambu County in Kenya, who works temporary jobs she can find. She has two younger siblings in her family. Edith wishes to have her own child in the future. In 2018, Edith began to experience troubling symptoms, including headaches, palpitations, and backaches. She had also been trying to conceive but with no success. Edith came to our medical partner's care center, Nazareth Hospital, for help, and she was diagnosed with multinodular goiter, which is a thyroid gland disorder. Edith needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse and help her live the life she hopes for. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMH), is helping Edith receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroid removal surgery on June 29th at Nazareth Hospital. AMH is requesting $657 to fund the procedure. Edith would love to become a mother in the future, “Wouldn’t it be good for me to have my own children? I really hope this surgery will be successful so that I can have a chance of getting my own child. I also can't wait and can't imagine being free from the pain and symptoms of this condition."

Teresia is a hard working 39-year-old woman from Kenya. She is the second born in a family of three children. Teresia and her siblings lost their parents early in life and have been taking care of each other. She was not able to continue with her education and this has made it hard for her to get a decent job. Currently, Teresia works doing laundry by hand for neighbors to sustain herself. In 2020, Teresia began to experience troubling symptoms, including tachycardia, irritation, nervousness, headache, and loss of sleep. She also shared with us that she had two miscarriages, which her doctors associate with her condition. She's been diagnosed with a thyroid condition and she needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Teresia receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on June 10th at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $657, and she and her family need help raising money. “I am looking forward to this treatment so that my life can be back to normal. I plead for support so that I can undergo the surgery. At least after healing, I can expect to have my own children,” said Teresia.

Gladys is a 47-year-old hardworking woman and a mother to three children. Gladys is separated from her husband and now lives with two of her children in a small rented room. In January, Gladys began experiencing troubling symptoms including neck swelling, headaches, and difficulty swallowing. She was diagnosed with an enlarged thyroid and needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare (AMH), is helping Gladys receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on June 9th at AMH's care center, where surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. Now, she needs help to fund this $657 procedure. Gladys shared, "if this condition is treated, I can continue with my work. I am requesting help so that I can be treated and be okay to take care of my children."

Jane is a street vendor who sells secondhand clothing to earn a living for her family. Jane is a mother of two children and she divorced her husband about 10 years ago. Jane has proudly brought up her children who are now 29 years and 21 years old. One of her children is a manual laborer while the second is in college. Two months ago, Jane began to experience troubling symptoms, including neck pain and swelling. On top of the pain, the swelling has affected her self-esteem and business relationships. She was diagnosed with a goiter, an abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is helping Jane receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on March 2nd at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $657, and she and her family need help raising money. “Though not very big, this swelling is reducing my relationships with people which is necessary for me to sell the clothes; every time I try to talk to a customer I notice them looking at the swelling. I kindly ask for help so that I can be ok again and continue working to support my children,” Jane said.

Jeria is a hairstylist from Kenya. Since her separation from her husband, Jeria has been a single mother, and she says it has taken the hand of God to manage to care for her two children who are now 16 and 10 years old. Jeria goes to her clients' homes for hairstyling on demand, so her workload and schedule can be unpredictable. Two years ago, Jeria began to experience troubling symptoms, including difficulty swallowing. She was diagnosed with a goiter, an abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is helping Jeria receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on March 2nd at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $657, and she and her family need help raising money. “I am worried because now I see the goiter growing fast. I am so worried since I cannot raise the money required. This condition has affected my relationships and interactions with friends and relatives. It has also affected my work and so I hope I can get help. I will appreciate and hope for successful surgery so that I can continue taking care of my children,” Jeria quietly shared.

Marylin is a street vendor from Kenya. She is a single lady with three children; two of whom are in school and one who works as a street vendor of beauty products. Marylin herself is not formally employed and also works as a street vendor of food at construction sites. Twelve years ago, Marylin began to experience troubling symptoms, including difficulty swallowing, and throat irritation. She was diagnosed with a goiter, an abnormal enlargement of the thyroid gland. Marilyn needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Marylin receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on February 2nd at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $657, and she and her family need help raising money. Marilyn shared, “I thank my friend for directing me to Nazareth Hospital, though it is hard for me to meet the cost of the treatment. I pray for help so that I can be well, regain my beauty, and also be strong again to continue taking care of my children."