Zar is a 23-year-old woman from Burma. She lives with her sister in Hpa-An Town, Karen State. Zar works as a seamstress at a shop and her sister works as a vendor in another shop that sells Karen clothes.
Zar was born with encephalocele, a type of neural type defect characterized by sac-like protrusions of nervous tissue through openings in the skull. Both incomplete bone fusion in the skull and incomplete closure of the neural tube contribute to this condition. If left untreated, the lump will continue to grow, heightening the risks of developmental delays and permanent neurological impairment.
Our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund, is requesting $1,500 to help cover the cost of corrective cranial surgery for Zar, which is scheduled to take place on June 8. Surgeons will remove the protrusion and correct the skull defect, hopefully eliminating the risk of future neurological complications and allowing Zar to develop along a healthy trajectory.
Zar says, “I feel lucky because some people have many appointments with their doctors and have to wait a long time to receive a surgery date. But in my case, I only had one appointment before I received my surgery date.”
