Meet Ho, a 78-year-old man from Cambodia. “Ho is married with two sons, eight daughters, and 20 grandchildren,” shares our medical partner, Children’s Surgical Centre (CSC). “Ho likes to listen to the monks pray and listen to the radio but he has a difficult time walking around alone and reading thanks to the cataracts in both of his eyes,” CSC explains.
The hyper-mature cataracts in both of his eyes are caused by the clouding of the lenses, resulting in decreased vision and in some cases can result in blindness. This is a common condition among elderly people. Everyday life and tasks have become very difficult, and Ho says, “he is sad because he can’t see the faces of his grandchildren.”
Ho needs cataract surgery on both of his eyes to remove the cloudy lenses and replace them with clear implants. This procedure costs $225 for both eyes and CSC reports,“the patient will have better vision from his right eye and he is a candidate for surgery on his left eye in one to two weeks.”
“After surgery Ho looks forward to going to pagoda [Hindu or Buddhist temple], helping his daughter do work at home, feeding his cows, and playing with his grandchildren,” CSC says.