Meet 41-year-old Yin from Thailand. She lives with her husband and six-year-old son, who is currently in the first grade. “She has been working as a day laborer on farms and construction sites with her husband for more than four years now,” reports our medical partner, Burma Border Projects (BBP). “Together, they earn about 350 baht (10 USD) per month; however, Yin has had to stop working because of her condition.” Yin has a uterine myoma—a benign, fibrous tumor within the muscle tissue of the uterus. “Yin’s abdomen is hard and painful due to the mass in her uterus,” explains BBP. “She has difficulty breathing and is unable to be physically active.” “Her condition has forced her to stop work for the past three to four months since her job is very physically demanding, and this has caused financial hardship for her family,” continues BBP. “Even with both Yin and her husband working, the money they earn is not always enough to pay for day-to-day expenses such as food and school fees.” With $1500 in funding, Yin will receive surgery to address her uterine myoma. She will undergo a total abdominal hysterectomy, as well as an oophorectomy—procedures that will remove Yin’s uterus, cervix and ovaries. Stage three uterus prolapse—where the pelvic muscles and ligaments supporting the uterus are weakened—calls for specific treatment, as well. $1500 will cover the cost of the operation, hospitalization, food allowance, transport, and pre and post-surgery out-patient visits. “After receiving surgery, Yin will no longer suffer from the symptoms she currently experiences,” says BBP. “She plans to go back to work with her husband and hopes to have another child.” “Yin wants her son to be a teacher when he grows up,” shares BBP. “She wants to be able to support him, so that he is able to become educated.” Yin tells us, “I want to be healthy so I can work and earn money to support my family and provide for my son.”

Meet Kyi Win, a 49-year-old wife and mother of five children from Burma. According to our medical partner, Burma Border Projects (BBP), “Kyi Win and her husband are farmers who grow their own food. When Kyi Win’s family needs money for various costs, such as school fees, they sell some spare rice or a pig.” Kyi Win is no longer able to work due to a prolapsed uterus. This condition occurs when all of the muscles surrounding the uterus weaken—consequently causing the uterus to drop. If her condition goes untreated, the muscles surrounding Kyi Win’s uterus will continue to weaken, leading to further health complications. “Her prolapsed uterus is now a mass outside of her body,” BBP explains. “This presents multiple problems for Kyi Win: she is unable to walk easily and therefore cannot work and care for her family.” As they are small-scale farmers who only receive labor assistance from the three oldest children, Kyi Win and her husband are unable to afford the cost of treatment. Kyi Win has already sought financial help from family members, who have helped pay for her previous medical expenses. However, Kyi Win tells BBP, “I do not want to cause further problems for my family by borrowing more money for my health issues.” With $1,500 in Watsi funding, Kyi Win will receive a total abdominal hysterectomy to remove her uterus and cervix—ensuring that her problems will not persist into the future. In addition to her operation, Kyi Win will receive seven days of hospital care, all necessary medical examinations, and a post-operative visit to help facilitate a safe recovery. Following her recovery, “Kyi Win will be able to return to caring for her family by continuing to work on the family farm,” predicts BBP. Kyi Win looks forward to the independence that will follow a successful procedure and recovery. She shares, “I will have no more problems if I can walk well.”

Joram, a talkative three-year-old boy from Tanzania, lives with his parents and four older siblings. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, (AMHF), shares, “Joram likes to draw and color pictures.” A few months ago, Joram was involved in an accident that left him with a severe burn on his right arm. AMHF explains, “Joram was quietly seated in the kitchen finishing his lunch while his sisters were outside chasing each other. Suddenly, his sisters came running into the kitchen and one of the sisters accidentally pushed Joram.” Upon falling, Joram landed in a pot of hot milk, which “poured onto Joram’s right arm and part of his chest and stomach.” Joram was immediately rushed to the hospital, where he stayed for several months to treat the burns throughout his body. At this point in time, “a good area of the wound has healed very well,” AMHF reports. However, one large part of his right arm has not responded to treatment, leaving an open wound. According to AMHF, “The wound hurts when lightly touched and bleeds when dressing is done.” Due to these symptoms and pain, “Joram is unable to use his right arm.” Without treatment, Joram’s burn can lead to sepsis—a complication of infection that prompts a full-body inflammatory response, typically resulting in exceptionally high fevers. Joram’s parents—who are both small scale farmers—have “spent a lot of money treating Joram’s wound,” explains AMHF. Despite their efforts, Joram’s parents’ income cannot cover the extra costs of the more complicated treatment that Joram urgently needs. With $780, Joram will receive a skin graft to heal the burn on his right arm. This operation will transplant a section of Joram's healthy skin to the site of the burn. Following this procedure, he will stay at Plaster House—a surgical rehabilitation center—for three months. In time, “Joram’s open wound will heal,” predicts AMHF. “He will have the ability to bend and stretch his right arm, allowing him to perform activities better.” “It was an accident which Joram’s sister feels badly about,” Joram’s parents tell AMHF. “We hope for complete healing so that Joram can use his arm normally.”

“My family is very young and depends fully on me. I really hope Watsi will help me to be treated so that I can regain my mobility and support my family,” says George, a 31-year-old husband and father of three from Kenya. George was recently injured while playing football in his village. “As he was playing, he was hit by a teammate and got an open fracture of the fibula of his right leg,” says our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation (AMHF). George was taken to a nearby hospital where the broken skin on his leg was stitched, but he could not afford the surgery he needed — an open reduction and internal fixation, or ORIF — to reposition and set the broken bone. AMHF tells us, “George is experiencing pain and difficulty in using his right leg.” Without treatment, AMHF adds, “George may be unable to use his leg, the pain will continue, and it may lead to complications like delayed healing.” $1,125 in funding covers the cost of surgery for George, as well as a 2-week hospital stay, and 10 physiotherapy sessions to aid in his recovery. AMHF explains, “We expect that after an ORIF, the bones will unite. George will be able to work and support his young family.” George adds, “I also wish to get back to playing football, which is my hobby.”

Nuch, a 15-year-old student from Cambodia, “enjoys reading English magazines,” shares our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Centre (CSC). The ninth grader also enthusiastically tells CSC that her favorite food is “fried pork.” Over the past few months, a cyst has persistently grown on her eyelid. This cyst—called a chalazion—is a painful condition caused by an oil blockage. When the opening of an oil gland near the eyelid becomes obstructed, the surrounding area begins to swell. While this swelling initially causes the eyelid to become red and tender, it soon afterwards transforms into a small mass. Given that the chalazion has grown rapidly over a short period of time, Nuch expresses her worry that the cyst “will get bigger.” For this reason, she has become increasingly “uncomfortable and shy around her friends,” Nuch explains to CSC. With $150, Nuch will receive an operation to remove the chalazion from her eyelid. This will be a quick procedure in which a single incision will be made to completely remove the cyst, thereby preventing it from returning in the future. After she recovers from her surgery, Nuch hopes to “get a job at a local garment factory to help support her family.”

Hopelyn is a shy one-year-old girl who lives with her mother in Kenya. Hopelyn was born with an umbilical hernia that causes swelling and discomfort around the belly button. Hopelyn is finally old enough to undergo the surgery she needs but her mother, Keziah, cannot afford the cost of the treatment. Keziah is a single mother who worries about her only daughter. She says, "I just wish to see my child normal and growing like other children." Keziah brought Hopelyn to the hospital when she was a few months old but the treatment to reduce the hernia was not successful. Since that time, Keziah has continued to work hard as a grocer but she broke into tears when she first learned how much Hopelyn's surgery would cost. For $500, Hopelyn will receive a herniorrhaphy. This procedure will eliminate her abdominal swelling so that her pain will subside. Let's fund Hopelyn's surgery so that she can lead a healthy and happy childhood with her caring mother, Keziah!