Chanaika is a 14-year-old girl from Bossan, a small town in Leogane about an hour's drive from LIFE Clinic in Neply, Haiti.
She came to LIFE Clinic seeking help for a painful growth on her right jawline that was causing extreme pain, discomfort, and difficulty eating. She was becoming sicker each day.
At LIFE Clinic, Dr. Mesilien and Dr. Peter were able to conduct lab work and diagnose her with a jaw tumor (ameloblastoma). They then advocated on her behalf to find a surgeon at The Bucco Facial Clinic in Petionville, who could perform LIFE-saving surgery.
The problem then was the cost of the surgery: 150,000 Haitian gourdes. A price she nor her family could ever afford.
Through myLIFEspeaks’ Emergency Medical Fund, we were able to cover the surgery and give hope to this previously desperate family. Without LIFE Clinic’s proper diagnosis and advocating to connect Chanaika with a good surgeon, Chanaika would most likely have died.
Today, Chanaika is healed and her tumor is gone. She is able to go back to living her LIFE as a healthy teenager.