Meet Kyaw Da! He’s a shy five-year-old boy who lives in Burma with his parents and four older brothers. Kyaw Da’s parents grow rice and vegetables, and his family hunts and collects wild fruit, vegetables, and roots to eat. To help pay for clinic visits, his father also works as a day laborer. Kyaw Da’s brothers go to school but Kyaw Da is unwell and doesn’t have enough energy to concentrate in class.
Kyaw Da has thalassemia, an rare inherited blood disorder that has caused him frequent nose-bleeds, yellow skin, and a swollen abdomen and spleen which causes him discomfort. “His father says that he can sleep well but doesn’t have a good appetite,” shares our medical partner, Burma Border Projects (BBP). “After each blood transfusion he is much more playful and energetic, but between transfusions he is lethargic and doesn’t want to play.”
For $1,015 Burma Border Projects will be able to provide Kyaw Da with a splenectomy, a surgery to remove the entire spleen. “This treatment will restore Kyaw Da’s appetite which will in turn help him to develop normally,” continues BBP. “Treatment will also allow Kyaw Da to return to school where he can be with his classmates again, and allow his parents to focus on working so they can save for Kyaw Da and his brothers’ future.” Let’s help his family pay for this treatment!
