The family of one-year-old Gabriella Konadu Opoku is appealing to individuals and benevolent organisations to help it raise US$50,000 for her to undergo a biliary atresia surgery in India.
Biliary atresia is an anatomic malformation of the liver.
“Children with biliary atresia require early surgery to correct the anomaly as the disease is progressive in nature,” a letter signed by Dr Taiba Jibril Afaa, a paediatric gastroenterologist at the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital, confirming little Gabriella’s condition said.
According to the letter, though Gabriella was diagnosed of the anomaly when she was five months, a surgery could not be performed on her because her condition had advanced.
As a result, “she has now developed complications of the disease for which she is being supported with medications.
“At this point, Gabriella will require a liver transplant which is not done in Ghana but can be done in countries like India among others.
“We would be grateful if you could support support Gabriella through her journey to transplant,” Dr Afaa’s letter which approved of support for little Gabriella said.
A teary unemployed mother of Gabriella, Dina Martey, who called on the Ghanaian Times to help her solicit the funds, said their little daughter is all what they have.
“Our daughter’s life is at stake and we don’t have that money to save her life. Since she was diagnosed, she is unable to eat and she has lost weight.
“The doctors said the surgery must be done as soon as practicable but look at me and the father we don’t have that money. If we had, we will have no difficulty at all using our last to save her life,” she said as she tried to hold back her tears.
Benevolent organisations are encouraged to donate into the Times Needy Fund – UBA Account number 00103068701511 to support little Gabriella.
BY JULIUS YAO PETETSI
