Vantha is a 77-year-old widow from Cambodia. She currently lives with her daughter, who is a farmer. Vantha helps with the cooking and cleaning around their home. During her free time, she enjoys listening to monks pray on the radio.
Ten years ago, Vantha developed a pterygium in her right eye, causing her to experience eye tearing, itchiness, redness, and blurry vision. 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. Vantha has difficulty seeing things clearly, recognizing faces, working, and going anywhere outside.
When Vantha learned about our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Centre, she traveled for four and a half hours seeking treatment. On August 15th, Vantha will undergo 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 $225, which covers treatment, supplies, and inpatient care for two days.
Vantha says, “I hope that after surgery I will see better. I want to recognize people’s faces and go to the pagoda by myself.”
