Arnav Gupta

On May 7, 2022, MOHAN Foundation’s Anudaan- “Making Transplants Affordable” team received an email from Aster CMI Hospital, Bengaluru requesting financial aid for Baby Kanika S.K. 

Kanika was suffering from Wilson’s disease, a rare inherited disorder that causes copper to accumulate in liver, brain and other vital organs. The disease was detected too late and her liver had already sustained a lot of damage hence and therefore she required an urgent liver transplant. 

Kanika, age 8, hails from Tumakuru, Karnataka. She belongs to a poor family. Her father is a small agricultural businessman, earning Rs. 20,000 per month which has been mostly utilized for his daughter’s treatment and medicines. The family had to borrow money from their relatives and friends as they could not afford the huge cost of their daughter’s liver transplant. 

A Few months ago, Kanika started falling sick and things took a turn for the worse as she started experiencing stomach aches and would vomit everything she ate. After receiving treatment from local hospital, Kanika was taken to Aster CMI Hospital, Bengaluru. Soon, her condition deteriorated to the point where she had to be rushed to the ICU. She was in a critical condition after her bilirubin levels went up, and she was unconscious for few days. At that moment, her family thought she was going to leave them all forever. Thankfully, with plasma therapy and five rounds of dialysis, her condition was stabilized. However the family was told that her disease has crossed the stage where medicines could help and only a liver transplant could save her life.

The mother immediately agreed to be the donor but they had no means to bear that huge transplant surgery cost of Rs 15 lakh. The hospital then approached the Anudaan team. With the support from MOHAN Foundation, few other NGOs and the hospital’s concession on transplant cost, Baby Kanika successfully underwent a liver transplant on May 20, 2022. Anudaan sanctioned Rs 1 lakh towards her surgery.

Both the mother and daughter are doing well. Baby Kanika is very happy and excited. She has started her education. Her ambition is to become a portraitist as she is very fond of art and craft.

“Many thanks and lots of gratitude to MOHAN Foundation’s Anudaan team for saving my daughter’s life with their financial support.”- Mrs. Hema S.K- mother.