Mom is 59 years old. She likes to listen to monks pray on the radio and read books on Buddhism. Two years ago, Mom developed a cataract in each eye, causing her blurred vision, itchiness, cloudy lenses, and extreme sensitivity to light. She has difficulty seeing things clearly, working, and going anywhere outside. When Mom learned about our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, she traveled for two hours seeking treatment. On December 6, doctors performed a phacoemulsification cataract surgery and an intraocular lens implant in each eye. After recovery, Mom will be able to see clearly again. Now, she needs help to fund this $292 procedure. "I hope that my eyes can see everything more clearly," she says, "so that I can easily cook and do other work by myself because I live alone. I want to be able to read books on Buddhism and go anywhere easily."

Kyaw Zwar is a 38-year-old man who lives in Burma and works as a mechanic. He's been struggling with a brain tumor for over ten years and has not been able to get adequate treatment. In 2006, Kyaw Zwar began to experience blurry vision and sharp pain in his head. However, he never sought treatment for his headaches, relying instead on painkillers until his marriage in 2011. When his wife brought him to visit a local doctor and a neurosurgeon, both prescribed him with medication that provided temporary relief of his symptoms. In July 2016, Kyaw Zwar fell unconscious. A CT scan performed at Yangon General Hospital diagnosed him with a brain tumor, and he learned that he needed surgery. Though Kyaw Zwar and his wife visited many hospitals, they were unable to find affordable treatment. They sold land to pay hospital fees and eventually found themselves in debt. Fortunately, Kyaw Zwar's cousin referred him to our medical partner. After assessment by a doctor at a partner hospital, Kyaw Zwar received an MRI test on October 18, 2016. This test should give his doctors a clearer picture of his brain, enabling them to develop a treatment plan. Now, Kyaw Zwar needs help to pay for this $814 procedure. "If he does not get the medical treatment he needs, we will lose everything, including our land," says Kyaw Zwar's wife, "but we don’t care about any of that because we just want him to get well. We feel like there is some hope now."

This is Amisha, a seven-year-old girl from Nepal who is currently studying in grade two. Her father works in India to support the family back home while her mother works in the field and watches the cattle. The yield from the family fields is enough to support them for only three months of the year. One day, Amisha was playing on a rope swing when it broke suddenly, and she landed on a rock. The fall fractured her left hand, leaving it swollen and painful. Amisha has been in pain ever since. Because of her hand's condition, she is unable to attend school and needs constant help with daily activities like eating and getting dressed. In hopes of finding treatment for Amisha, her parents walked for five hours to visit Watsi's medical partner, Possible. For $195, orthopedic surgeons at Bayalpata Hospital will place metal rods, pins, or screws to set Amisha's wrist in its correct position. With time and physical therapy, Amisha's wrist will be healed, and she will no longer be in pain. Amisha's father shares with us, "I wish Amisha's treatment happens soon." Let's support this family so that Amisha can regain her left hand function and return to school.

Chroeng is a 33-year-old farmer who lives with his wife and son in Cambodia. He enjoys playing football and spending time with his parents. When he was 12 years old, Chroeng developed a bilateral ear infection that caused the tympanic membrane (eardrum) on both sides to perforate. Since then, he has experienced ear pain, discharge, and hearing loss in both ears. After hearing about Children's Surgical Center (CSC) on the radio, Chroeng and his brother traveled for two hours to reach CSC for evaluation. In June of 2016, Chroeng underwent a successful myringoplasty on the right side to repair his torn eardrum. In Chroeng's left ear, however, a cholesteatoma—an abnormal skin growth located behind the eardrum—has developed. Over time, a cholesteatoma can grow large enough to cause hearing loss, dizziness, or facial paralysis. Treatment for Chroeng is a mastoidectomy, a surgical procedure in which doctors remove the diseased cells in the hollow, air-filled spaces in the skull behind the ears. The cells—known as mastoid air cells—are diseased as a result of the chronic ear infections that spread to the skull structures near Chroeng’s left ear. Doctors will also remove the cholesteatoma that has grown behind his eardrum. $842 pays for Chroeng’s surgery as well as two hearing tests, two nights in the hospital, two days of inpatient post-operative care, and medicine. After the mastoidectomy, Chroeng’s left ear discharge and pain will stop. Let's help make that happen.