A birth defect threatens Vannaly‘s life

In Laos, little Vannaly, barely a year old, finds her life threatened. The cause is a biliary cyst, an extremely rare congenital anomaly.

An in-depth diagnosis by La Chaîne de l’Espoir

Since she was just 1 month old, Vannaly has suffered from severe vomiting and has had great difficulty feeding herself.

Her condition quickly alerted her parents, who decided to take her to Tahkek hospital, some 120 kilometers from their modest home in the village of Ban Naphao.

During this 1st consultation, a lump on the belly is detected.

However, a very marked and worrying case of jaundice prompted La Chaîne de l’Espoir teams to investigate the diagnosis further.

Thanks to the results of a CT scan, a biliary cyst is quickly detected.

A rare pathology

A bile duct cyst, known in medical terms as a “choledochal cyst”, is a congenital abnormality of the duct that carries bile from the liver to the gallbladder and small intestine. When a child suffers from a choledochal cyst, bile can flow back into the liver, causing liver problems or inflammation of the pancreas.

This pathology is extremely rare: in Western countries, one child in 100,000 to 150,000 is born with choledochal cysts. Girls are four times more likely to be affected than boys.

Surgery the only solution for Vannaly’s life

Although progress has been made in Laos, access to healthcare remains difficult and below average in Southeast Asia. For example, the country suffers from a shortage of healthcare professionals, particularly in rural areas. Despite advances in training and recognition of specialties, there are still major needs, particularly in pediatric surgery.

That’s why a volunteer surgical team from La Chaîne de l’Espoir is ready to go in and operate on Vannaly and 20 other children. With your help, we will be able to raise the funds needed for his operation. Despite the commitment of all our volunteer surgeons, such a mission has a cost: 1,800 euros per child.

Thanks to your generosity, Vannaly and the other children of Laos will be saved.

Thank you in advance for your support!

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