Abdul Ahad

Abdul Ahad is only 8 years-old. In March this year, he was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma –a cancer characterised by the formation of abnormal white blood cells. Abdul Ahad’s family are from Chichwatni, Punjab, which is where they had to travel from to seek treatment for their son at Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital (SKMCH) in Lahore.

Abdul Ahda’s parents are not literate. His father runs a shop in Chichawanti. He earns a nominal income, barely sufficient to support his family. Abdul Ahad’s mother stays at home to care for him and his brother. Covering the expensive cost of treatment for Abdul Ahad’s disease would simply have been impossible for his parents.

After being accepted for treatment at SKMCH, Abdul Ahad’s chemotherapy cycles commenced in April. However, he developed some complications in reaction to the treatment, and had to be admitted to hospital. Abdul Ahad is expected to undergo Stem Cell Transplant in the coming days, and is currently undergoing diagnostic tests.

Abdul Ahad is just one of many children admitted to SKMCH with cancer. One of many children whose parents are faced with a devastation twofold: the potentially deadly disease their child is suffering from; and the reality that they cannot afford the care their child needs.

For 20 years, IKCA and SKMCH has been working to provide free cancer care to poor patients who cannot afford treatment. Your support has enabled us to save lives. Please help us give Abdul Ahad and children like him, hope and the chance at the life they deserve. This Ramadan, please donate your zakat and sadaqah to IKCA.