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Our first patient, Samuel from Lilongwe, Malawi – whose case was the direct catalyst for the founding of Tulisa – has finally undergone successful heart surgery after a two-year wait, thanks to your generosity!
Samuel was born with a severe heart defect: there was a hole in the septum between the two ventricles (known as a ventricular septal defect), meaning that with every heartbeat, his body received too little blood, as part of the blood did not enter the circulation properly due to this defect. As a result, Ralph Samuel was unable to play properly with his friends; he tired quickly, suffered from shortness of breath – sometimes even at rest – and did not develop physically in the same way as his playmates of the same age.
Samuel lives with his parents in a poor neighbourhood in Lilongwe, the capital of Malawi. His father is a day labourer and his mother supplements their income by working as a domestic helper. The money they earn is only enough for the bare essentials. They could not afford the heart operation that was so crucial to Samuel’s survival.
However, once Tulisa had received enough donations, he was finally able to undergo open-heart surgery in April this year at the cardiac surgery department of Mater Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya, where the hole in his ventricle was closed. After just two weeks, he had already gained 2 kg (weighing just 12 kg at the age of 4)!
He can now finally look forward to a childhood free from physical and emotional suffering. Samuel and his parents thank you from the bottom of their hearts!