Emma has an entrepreneurial spirit and sells groundnuts, flour, and ‘thobwa’ (a flavorsome local beverage made from maize and millet) to earn a living. She is married to a primary school teacher and they have four children. All the children are independent except the last born who is in high school. Emma lives with her husband and a grandchild in Lilongwe in a house that belongs to her family. The house has no electricity but has piped water, which Emma is grateful to have. Emma works hard to lead a good life but has no medical insurance as she considers the insurance as being too expensive for her family to afford.
Emma developed a goiter many years ago in 1993. This is a swelling on the neck resulting from enlargement of the thyroid gland. The goiter has since been growing in size and causing discomfort. She had been to different traditional healers and health facilities until 2008 when she was referred to KC Hospital for surgical review. The doctor at the hospital told her that the goiter would subside without any intervention if she would avoid getting angry. She was further advised to avoid emotional stress, shouting, and spending time in direct sunlight. However, the nature of her business which she also combines with farming compels her to spend hours in the sun and the swelling has continued growing over time.
Emma currently has difficulties in breathing especially when sleeping, has a lot of discomforts, and also difficulty in swallowing food. She is not able to carry her grandchild on her back because it gives her a choking feeling. Her condition has affected her business because she cannot carry large quantities of ‘thobwa’ on her head to go and sell as she used to.
Seeing Emma’s condition, her relatives have been trying to seek help for her and a cousin recently learned that she might be able to get help at Partners in Hope Medical Center and told Emma about it. She did not hesitate to come and meet the surgeon here who after confirming the diagnosis of goiter recommended a thyroidectomy. This procedure is a surgical removal of the thyroid gland. It is expected that the swelling will go away with the operation and Emma will be able to resume activities that she is unable to do now. The surgery will also improve her appearance and increase her self-esteem.
She is scheduled for this procedure on 26th October and is seeking financial assistance since her family is unable to meet the costs.
“When people look at me they say, “amayi achotupa pakhosi aja” (woman with a swelling on the neck) and it really affects my self-esteem. I look forward to the removal of this goiter and looking normal again,” shared Emma.