Mu Hee is a 23-year-old woman from Thailand. She lives with her parents, older brother, sister in-law, three nephews and three nieces in a refugee camp. Mu Hee’s older brother is the sole income earner in their family. He works as a nurse in the camp’s hospital, which is run by International Rescue Committee (IRC). Mu Hee’s parents and her sister in-law look after the household chores. Mu Hee’s nieces and nephews are students and Mu Hee is a Bible school student. Since the outbreak of Covid-19 in March 2020, she has been studying online in the refugee camp. Her teachers support her school fees and food. In her free time, Mu Hee likes to play with her nieces and nephews. She also loves to listen to music and sing.
When Mu Hee was 14 years old, she began to experience severe abdominal pain. The first time it occurred, her father called a medic who lived close to their house, and the medic gave her an injection. She felt better after the injection, but continued to feel unwell every month. When she was 15, her father took her to the clinic in the camp to check whether Mu Hee had a serious illness in her abdomen, but the medic could not find any problem. Mu Hee’s pain continued and she continued to receive treatment to help, but she did not think that her condition was serious because she had heard from her friends that some women experienced pain during the first day of their period.
In early 2020, Mu Hee spoke about this condition with a staff member from a nearby clinic and with one of her teachers. Both urged her to get a check-up, and in February 2020, Mu Hee went to a clinic and a medic found a mass in her left ovary. Doctors have tried to treat her with medications for almost a year, but the mass has continued to grow. During a follow-up appointment in January 2021, the doctor told her that she would need surgery. Recently, Mu Hee has experienced pain in the left side of her lower abdomen almost every day. The pain is on and off and she feels most uncomfortable when running or walking, especially over long distances. She also experiences some pain as she does other basic daily tasks.
Mu Hee sought treatment through our medical partner, Burma Children Medical Fund. She is now scheduled to undergo mass removal surgery, and she is requesting $1,500 to cover the total cost of her procedure and care.
Mu Hee said, “The first time when I heard that I have a mass in my ovary, I felt very sad. I am also worried that the mass might be cancerous. I think about my condition very often, but my parents are very supportive, and they encourage me not to be afraid. I believe that I will no longer experience pain after surgery.”
