A family at Senti Kumi in Likoni, Mombasa, is appealing for medical help to save the life of their 23-year-old second year university student who has been diagnosed with brain tumor.
Brain tumour is a cancerous or non-cancerous mass growth of abnormal cells in the brain.
According to the mother of Rose Akinyi Taka, her third born daughter fell ill in August 2023.
At the time, she thought it was a normal headache that could be cured with antibiotics or painkillers.
But her sickness has turned into a nightmare that has not only taken a toll on Akinyi’s health but also depleted her family’s meagre resources.
“She was sick and when i heard she was complaining of severe headache and dizziness, I thought it was a headache that would clear upon taking painkillers and antibiotics. But it turned into a nightmare that has left her paralysed, ” stated Akinyi’s mother.
She said when Akinyi became ill while in school in Nairobi, they took her to Germany Medical Centre, but her condition did not improve. She was referred to Kenyatta University teaching referral and research hospital
“As her health deteriorated, we kept on moving from one hospital to another, in search of cure but to no avail,” Aloo added.
It was not until April last year that Akinyi was diagnosed with severe right vestibular schwannoma, also known as an acoustic neuroma, a benign tumour that affects the nerves of the inner ear leading to hemorrhagic stroke, an emergency condition in which a ruptured blood vessel causes bleeding inside the brain, and Sepsis, a serious condition that happens when the body’s immune system has an extreme response to an infection.
This has left her with the loss of hearing, dizziness, and balance issues.
According to referral letter dated 22/11/2023, authored by doctor Njeru PK, a neurosurgeon at the KNH, indicates that Akinyi”s health cannot stand to undergo surgery and recommended for her to undergo cyberknife operation.
CyberKnife is a non-invasive treatment that uses a robotic arm to deliver radiation to tumors
“Surgery is highly risk. Cyberknife is recommended” the note read partly
On June 5 last year. Dr. Chris, a physician at Aga Khan Hospital in Mombasa, indicated that Akinyi had reported facial paralysis and persistent headache.
Akinyi has since been discharged from the hospital due to the soaring hospital bill.
Having exhausted all resources, the family was forced to give out their land title deed to Aga khan Hospital to secure her discharge, leaving a bill of 3.2M.
The family is also fighting several bank debts following loans borrowed to cater to their daughter’s medical bills.
The family is now appealing to local leaders, government, and well-wishers to intervene and help save the life of their daughter.
Tumors can start in the brain, or cancer elsewhere in the body and spread to the brain.
Symptoms include new or increasingly strong headaches, blurred vision, loss of balance, confusion, and seizures. In some cases, there may be no symptoms.
Treatments include surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy.
To help Akinyi, one can reach her mother through 0721885682
Written By: Peter Maseke.
