Tragic situation of 28 year old Nghe An man on dialysis for 10 years

(Baonghean.vn) - From a healthy young man, after 10 years of dialysis, Nhu Sy Minh (born in 1989) in Hamlet 5, Quynh Hoa, Quynh Luu has now become emaciated. All those years of dialysis have caused Minh's family to be bankrupt and in debt.

I went to Nhu Sy Minh's family's house on a Sunday morning. Pouring a cup of water to invite guests, Mrs. Vu Thi Ly (born in 1970) could not hold back her tears when talking about her eldest son's pitiful situation: "His illness is getting worse and worse. There were nights when my son was in so much pain that he groaned, making my tears roll down. Seeing him in pain, my husband and I felt like our hearts were being torn apart. For the past 11 years, he has been like this."

Wiping away her tears, Mrs. Ly began to tell about her eldest son's illness. After finishing high school in 2007, due to difficult family circumstances, Minh had to drop out of school to help his parents raise his younger siblings. Not long after, Minh was selected for military service. When there were only 10 days left to go, one day when he came home from playing soccer and it was raining, Minh's face suddenly became severely swollen. The family thought he had a cold so they bought him medicine, but unexpectedly his illness got worse.

Minh's family's rickety house. Photo by Ho Van

Minh's parents took him to the district hospital for examination and the doctor diagnosed him with kidney failure and told the family to take him to Thai An General Hospital (Vinh City) for further testing. Hearing that news, Minh's limbs were weak because all his dreams and ambitions could not be fulfilled. After examination and testing, Minh was referred to Bach Mai Hospital (Hanoi) with the hope of having the best treatment conditions.

At that time, Minh's family had to sell their only buffalo and borrow money from relatives to take Minh to Hanoi for treatment. Because they did not have health insurance, Minh spent nearly 100 million VND during the 3 months he was treated at Bach Mai Hospital. However, Minh's condition did not improve but instead worsened.

With their assets depleted and debts piling up, Minh's parents had to transfer their son to Hospital 115 for treatment to save money and then apply for a voluntary insurance card for him. Every week, Minh had to go to Vinh 3 times for dialysis.

Over the past 10 years, Minh has had to go to Hanoi for emergency treatment 14 times due to a broken hand bridge, heart failure and difficulty breathing. Each emergency treatment takes about 2 weeks to a month. In the dilapidated 4-room house, there is nothing of value left except the rickety beds, and for the past few years there has been almost no laughter. To have money for their son to undergo dialysis, Minh's parents not only had to mortgage their house's red book but also had to borrow the red book of their siblings to mortgage.

In 2012, Minh felt pain in both shoulders and joints, went to the doctor and was diagnosed with arthritis. After treatment with antibiotic injections, both shoulders swelled and the tumor grew larger and larger, he had to use a very high pillow to lie down.

10 years of dialysis made Minh's body thin and weak. Photo by Ho Van.

Due to difficult family circumstances, Minh's two younger brothers had to drop out of school to work for hire, one in the South and one in the North, just enough to support themselves.

Two years ago, due to two tumors in his shoulder that were compressing the blood vessels in his arm, doctors performed surgery to connect the dialysis tube to the heart stem to continue prolonging Minh's life. However, last October, the dialysis tube connection in Minh's chest became infected with an unknown cause, and the doctor recommended that Minh be transferred to Bach Mai Hospital for treatment.

There, Minh’s infection was cured. Doctors then found a new location for the dialysis tube. Nearly two months of treatment cost the family more than 30 million VND.

Mr. Nhu Sy An, Minh's father, said: "During the time Minh was being treated in Hanoi, all he could do was rely on his second son and his wife and his youngest son who worked as factory workers. My wife and I were in debt and could not borrow more."

Mr. Dung, Chairman of the People's Committee of Quynh Hoa Commune, said: "Minh's case of having to undergo dialysis for many years has made his poor family even more difficult, with debts piling up. The Youth Union and Women's Union of the commune have repeatedly called for support for his family, but to no avail. We hope that organizations and individuals will pay attention and help him and his family to overcome their difficulties."

Please send all support to the family of Nhu Sy Minh (son of Mr. Nhu Sy An), hamlet 5, Quynh Hoa commune, Quynh Luu, Nghe An. Phone: 01656.853.486

Ho Van Ngoi