Adija is a 74-year-old woman from Malawi who is married and has two children. She grows rice on a small scale and is mainly supported by her granddaughter.
Ten years ago, Adija began to experience troubling symptoms, including a swelling on her neck. Though small, she still reported to the hospital for support, but they incorrectly treated the condition as tonsilitis, and the swelling kept on growing bigger. Not tiring in her journey to get help, Adija returned to the hospital three years later after noticing that swallowing was becoming tough. She was then diagnosed with a goiter and referred to the national hospital for proper management. For the past seven years, she has been visiting the hospital for surgery to no avail. At the beginning of this year, Adija’s condition became worse – she could not breathe well, could not walk long distances, had frequent coughs, and sometimes could choke while sleeping, altogether making it challenging for her to live peacefully and eat comfortably. Fortunately, when she was taken to the hospital in May due to her condition, she was referred to our medical partner’s care center, Partners in Hope, for urgent attention. There, the doctors performed tests, and she was diagnosed with a colloid goiter, an abnormal swelling of the thyroid gland. The thyroid is the gland located in front of the neck and produces thyroid hormones. These hormones are responsible for functions such as metabolism, growth, and other bodily functions. Adija needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse.
Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare, is helping Adija receive treatment. On June 24th, she is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy at Partners in Hope, during which surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. She contributed a co-pay toward her care and needs help raising $1,015 to fund her treatment.
Adija said, “If only I can be assisted, I will be very happy again. As an old woman, I wish to live a happy life in my last days of life.”