"When Chheng was very young, she fell down a flight of stairs, causing a slipped capital femoral epiphysis, which caused her right hip joint to fuse to her pelvis," Children's Surgical Centre (CSC) tells us. "This means that her legs did not grow symmetrically, so not only does she have constant pain in her hip/groin region, she has a limp. She can only walk around the house for a short time before the pain becomes too unbearable to continue." Chheng is a 27-year-old wife and mother of two. "Her family had tried a Khmer traditional healer but the treatments never worked," CSC writes. "Finally another person in her village told her about CSC, so her and her mother made a three hour trip seeking care." Clinicians have recommended a hip replacement for Chheng. This will allow her to carry out daily activities like helping her husband on the farm without pain. Let's raise $430 for this treatment and make sure that Chheng can be as active as she needs and wants to be in her life.

Thuon was born with cerebral palsy. As a result of her condition, she has developed contractures on her wrist and elbow. The limited function of her arm prevents her from working. Thuon likes to watch TV and sing along to pop music. She is hoping for corrective surgery so she can help her family work on their rice farm. For $300, we can provide Thuon with a left wrist fusion and tendon release treatment. This will reduce pain and restore function to her wrist and elbow, allowing her to help her family on the farm and live a more active life!

Gibson is a two-month-old boy from Kenya and the youngest of four children. Gibson’s mother and father are small-scale farmers raising their family in a single-room house in the coastal region of Kenya. The family does not own land, but they lease small plots of land for others to till. They rely on this money as their sole source of income. Baby Gibson has a condition called hydrocephalus, in which buildup of fluid inside the skull leads to swelling in the brain. This condition results in an enlarged head and increased intra-cranial pressure, which, left untreated, will cause brain damage. Gibson needs a shunt incision surgery, which is expected to prevent Gibson from suffering brain damage. The family is not able to raise the $980 to meet the cost of the surgery, and that’s where we all come in! With this surgery, Gibson's head size will gradually reduce and he can live a normal and healthy life. Gibson’s mother says, “I have traveled this far with hopes that my son can get the treatment that he needs.” For $980, we can give Gibson the opportunity to lead a healthy life without risk of long-term brain damage as a result of this condition.

For the past eight months, Mamourou has had increasing difficulty urinating due to an enlarged prostate which is obstructing the urine passageway. This condition was causing him very severe pain, so Mamourou's doctor temporarily inserted a catheter to help the urine drain. The doctor recommended a prostatectomy (surgical removal of the prostate) in order to resolve this urinary obstruction and Mamourou's accompanying pain. Since the placement of the urinary catheter, however, Mamourou has not been able to work which is weighing upon his family. After the death of his wife five years ago, he became the sole caretaker of his four children and works diligently as a farmer to sustain his family and ensure access to education for each of his children. This leaves very little money for him to spend on the operation he needs to relieve his condition. For $730, we can help Mamourou get well again so he can continue supporting his children!

Kishor is an ambitious and adorable 5 year-old boy from Nepal. Kishor, who lives with his mother and older brother, is a kindergarten student who is already excelling in school. In fact, a selective scholarship program sponsors his education. Like most kids his age, Kishor loves playing with toys. He also likes to visit his mother at the District Office, where she works. Even though he is only 5, Kishor has big plans for his future! He wants to become a doctor or an officer where his mother works. Kishor has undescended testes, a condition that may lead him to be infertile and unable to have children. Furthermore, this condition could lead to carcinoma if untreated. Kishor’s medical treatment, corrective surgery, costs $1,010 dollars. This procedure will allow Kishor to lead a healthy, normal life, and give him the opportunity to have a family of his own in the future!

Genet is a 23-year-old woman from Ethiopia who has both serious heart problems as well as retinal detachment, an eye condition that will cause blindness if left untreated. Genet was 11 when her mother died. She cannot remember her father—he died when she was very young—and she has no siblings. Life would have been hard enough as an orphaned only child, but Genet also suffered from severe mitral stenosis, a potentially life-threatening heart condition, for 13 years. Her illness forced her to quit her job as a housemaid. Paying for heart or eye surgery is absolutely impossible. Fortunately, Genet heard about Dr. Rick Hodes from a former cardiac patient in Gurage, the area of Ethiopia where she lives. She managed to save up bus fare to come to Addis Ababa, where Dr. Hodes immediately diagnosed her heart condition and sent her to India to receive treatment. In India, her heart surgeons discovered that she needs emergency retinal surgery to save her eyesight. After everything she's been through, letting Genet go blind is not an option. Staff at Dr. Hodes clinic tell us that Genet hopes to finish her education and return to work, but that she is painfully aware of the fact that these dreams depend on working eyes. Genet deserves a break, and we can make it happen. Let's do this!