This is the success story of Alishba, a 9-year-old ‘Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) Survivor’. She was diagnosed with a CHD called a Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD), in which there is a hole that occurs in the septum (wall) that separates the heart’s lower ventricles (chambers) and allows blood to pass from the left to the right side of the heart.
The oxygen-rich blood then gets pumped back to the lungs instead of out to the body, causing the heart to work harder. A VSD is potentially life-threatening, and symptoms include shortness of breath, frequent respiratory infections, paleness etc.
One day, Alishba’s parents noticed that she had cyanosis (bluish-purple skin colour). She was also being troubled by severe breathing issues. Especially at school where she even fainted at times. It broke her parents’ hearts seeing her struggle and they had no idea about the underlying cause.
After being taken to a doctor in their hometown of Peshawar, the capital city of the northernmost province of Pakistan – KPK, she had to undergo an Echocardiography (ECHO), which is a cardiac ultrasound. The results of this test revealed the presence of a potentially life-threatening heart condition.
This was totally shattering news for the family. To make things worse, the estimated cost of the treatment was unaffordable for them. Not giving up though, they continued their search for treatment options. This unfortunately lasted for years, before they eventually made their way to Lahore, where our flagship project is also located.
They had a meeting with Dr. M. Asim Khan, a renowned Pediatric Cardiac Surgeon who also happens to be a PCHF Medical Advisory Board Member. After to listening to Alishba’s father describe their ordeal, which included him being the sole breadwinner in a family of 10 as a labourer, he was referred to us.
Having financially supported over 900 child heart procedures since 2016, we are best suited to saving lives of deserving children like Alishba. This is largely thanks to our incredible donor base who we are thankful beyond measure to.
Once Alishba’s father contacted us, our team immediately set up a meeting with the family. They were told that we would do our absolute utmost to save her life. After a swift evaluation process, it was confirmed that we would financially support the heart surgery.
This was possible because of one of our partners in building hope, Deerfield Foundation. We are grateful for their contribution towards our cause and together, we have paved the way to a normal life for hundreds of children.
Alisbah’s surgery was going to take place at Ittefaq Hospital (Trust) in Lahore. World-class CHD healthcare professionals were on board and the family was told that in terms of preparation, everything had been done.
The hours that followed were probably the most difficult in the lives of Alishba’s loved ones, but to their immense credit, they remained calm throughout. Following the completion of the procedure, we were thrilled to inform them that Alishba had overcome CHD! She was now a ‘CHD Survivor’ who had prevailed over so much adversity.
Her family members, especially her father, were all overjoyed. At the time of discharge, he said that they would never forget what our organization had done for them and wished us continued success in all our projects. We wish them all the best for a new beginning.
1 in 100 children are born with CHD, the world’s most common birth defect. We hope that these stories inspire even more people to contribute towards our cause so that we can continue shaping a brighter future for affected children and their families. We are genuinely leaving no stone unturned for them. Every life matters, every child matters.
Join us on our journey to conquering CHD in Pakistan by donating now towards child heart surgeries or the construction of Pakistan’s first dedicated Children’s Heart Hospital & Research Institute at: https://pchfna.kindful.com/
#SuccessStory #CHDSurvivor #VSD
#EveryLifeMattersEveryChildMatters #PCHFNA
