Abu Dhabi: “Smile for mama before going to work. Love u Van, I know you are not feeling good today but still you gave me your sweet smile,” said a touching Facebook post dated August 6 by Filipina mum Fatima Devi Reverente.
Abu Dhabi-based dental assistant Fatima’s eight-month-old son Ivan is battling for life at the Shaikh Khalifa Medical City (SKMC). Born without a gall bladder and bile duct, Ivan has been diagnosed with a condition called biliary atresia.
The birth defect is rare, with an occurrence of 1/10,000 in the US, and perhaps rarer still in the UAE. It is said to progressively worsen, ultimately leading to potentially fatal liver failure which Fatima simply dreads.
“No, we want to do everything we can to save Van,” she said, desperate to get her son a liver transplant.
Costly transplant
“He underwent a procedure last month but it was of no help. He urgently needs a liver transplant but it is way beyond our reach,” she said, adding that her husband Ryan works as a storekeeper with a private firm.
The couple’s first-born child, Ivan’s condition has so deeply touched the community that a full-fledged social media campaign has been launched in his support.
Fatima said: “We are grateful that friends from our fraternity have taken up Ivan’s cause. The campaign aims at raising funds for his treatment through the sale of T-shirts that bear the words: “Be a hero for Baby Ivan”.
Fatima said: “The transplant would have to be conducted in the Philippines, Singapore or Taiwan and it is estimated to cost around $80,000 (Dh293,840). Our earnings will not suffice to raise this amount. We beg for help to give Ivan a normal life.”
Completely shattered
She said Ivan was born on November 29, 2013 and his condition came to light six months after a series of tests and procedures. “We were completely shattered when we heard the news. But we will do whatever it takes to save his life. We appeal to the community to please help us.”
She said the quality of the T-shirts, which were being sold at Dh25 apiece, has been vastly improved to raise its price to Dh50. “Hopefully, this will help garner more funds.”
For more details of the campaign, go to https://www.facebook.com/pages/Be-A-HERO-for-BABY-IVAN/649326495150169?fref=ts
If you wish to help Baby Ivan, write to editor@xpress4me.com
