Heartbroken mom pleads for help as medical costs soar

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Cape Town - An Ottery mom is trying to raise funds to pay the medical bills for her daughter who suffers from Cystic Fibrosis and Pseudomonas. Shanaaz April, 40, was devastated when her beautiful daughter, Kauthar, 11, was diagnosed, and says: “When Kauthar was born she was in and out of hospital. “She started getting chest infections and rectum prolapses. “Only after her third prolapse was she diagnosed, when a student doctor recommended a sweat test,” the mother of four explains. She was diagnosed with a life-threatening illness called Cystic Fibrosis, a hereditary disease that affects the lungs and digestive system.

The body produces thick and sticky mucus that can clog the lungs and obstruct the pancreas.

“I didn’t know what Cystic Fibrosis was, but there was a sense of relief knowing what exactly was wrong. I was told it was incurable, and that she would have a short life span. I broke down,” the heartbroken mom says.

Kauthar, who attends a normal school in Lansdowne, has to take 50 pills every single day to help her body digest food, because her pancreas does not work.

“The monthly expense for her medication alone is between R6000 and R7000,” says Shanaaz.

“She also contracted a permanent case of Pseudomonas (a bacterial infection). She now has to take medication for that which she has to inhale via a machine.”

The family has a hospital bill of almost R200 000, but the mom says if they can get Kauthar on a medical aid, it would only cost them about R90 000.

The family has started a Back-a-buddy crowdfunding campaign for Kauthar Blignaut, or you can contact Shanaaz directly on 074 604 3791.

Daily Voice