Seang Y is a 37-year-old mother from Cambodia. She hails from Kandal province and loves gardening and cooking. Her husband works in construction and she is a full-time mom to two young children. For the last three years, Seang Y has been experiencing a sore throat and difficulty swallowing. Constantly feeling unwell makes it difficult to care for her children and she is not able to eat properly due to the pain and inflammation. Seang Y was recently diagnosed with enlarged tonsils and adenoids, which, if left untreated, will cause her symptoms to persist and possibly intensify over time. Our medical partner, Children's Surgical Centre, is requesting $265 to fund a tonsillectomy and adenoidectomy for Seang Y, which is scheduled to take place on February 22nd. Surgeons will remove her tonsils and adenoids, hopefully relieving Seang Y of her symptoms and helping her live much more comfortably. She hopes after surgery she will feel normal again and have more energy for her kids.

Olivious is a 34-year-old single mother from Uganda. She lost her husband four years ago to a road accident, leaving her the only breadwinner of the family. She is a farmer and together with her two children, lives in their two-roomed mud-built house. Her income is quite limited, which frustrates her efforts to provide a quality life for her children. Olivious has had lower abdominal pain, backaches and fatigue for sometime. She has not been able to work as well as she needs, due to this pain. When she visited Nyakibale Hospital, she was diagnosed with a large pelvic mass and a curative laparotomy surgery was recommended to heal her condition. She is not able to raise the $242 needed, and thus appeals for help. Olivious says, “I am not able to work well in the farms. Please fund my surgery so that I can be treated and resume my duties with ease."

Vicky is a friendly 38-year-old mother to four boys aged between 2 and 12 years old. She lives in a three-room semi-permanent house with her family. Her husband is a small-scale maize farmer who works tirelessly to support his family. Vicky has a big anterior neck swelling that moves when swallowing. The swelling has been there for ten years now and has been gradually increasing in size, with pain that aggravates her when she lifts heavy things. Vicky states that she first developed goiter when she was a form two student. It was removed in 2007 in a Ugandan hospital, but reappeared three years later. Vicky began to experience troubling symptoms, including being unable to eat, drink, or sleep comfortably. She had an especially difficult time when she was expecting her children. Neighbors always help her with home chores as her children are still young and her health condition limits her physical capacity. Sometimes she has elevated blood pressure that causes angina. At our medical partner's hospital, she was diagnosed with Multinodular Thyroid Cyst. She needs surgery to prevent her symptoms from getting worse. Our medical partner, African Mission Healthcare Foundation, is helping Vicky receive treatment. She is scheduled to undergo a thyroidectomy on February 21st at our medical partner's care center. Surgeons will remove all or part of her thyroid gland. This procedure will cost $936, and she and her family need help raising the funds. Vicky says, ”I am so stressed with what I am going through. I would love to work together with my husband in order to provide for our family, but my health status cannot allow me. Please help me because I am optimistic that I will get well someday and be able to help.”