Nabatanzi needs Shs155m for a liver transplant

Three-months old Inayah Nabatanzi was born healthy but her eyes turned yellow two weeks after birth. Her parents took her to Naguru Hospital in Kampala where doctors put her under light therapy for five days thinking she had jaundice. However, the therapy did not help at all. 

According to Sumaiya Nakabuye, Nabatanzi’s mother, the doctors then recommended laboratory tests, which revealed she had high bilirubin levels. 

The brown and yellow fluid produced in the liver is a byproduct of the breakdown of red blood cells. A high level of this fluid often means that the liver is not filtering bilirubin the way it is supposed to.

“When the doctors did a scan of her stomach the gall bladder was not visible. It is at this point that she was referred to Mulago National Referral Hospital where after several tests, it was revealed she had biliary atresia,” her mother says.

Biliary atresia is a condition in infants in which the bile ducts outside and inside the liver are scarred and blocked. Because of the blockage, bile cannot flow into the intestine, so it builds up in the liver and damages it.

By the time of the diagnosis, the baby was already 10 weeks old and even the temporary solution would not help. At three months, she has an abdominal extension because her liver keeps swelling. Nabatanzi experiences pain and discomfort while passing stool and her skin and eyes are yellow and itchy. She also passes yellow urine.  

The doctors recommended a liver transplant as soon as possible to help reverse her condition and the longer the surgery delays, the more the liver gets damaged. 

The transplant would be done at BLK Max Delhi Hospital in India at a fee of $40,000 (about Shs155m).

“We wish the surgery can be done as soon as possible but we cannot afford the cost. We, therefore, appeal to well-wishers to kindly support us financially in order to save our daughter’s life,” Nakabuye pleads.

To financially support Nabatanzi, send mobile money to 0758632476 Nakabuye Sumaiya (mother) or 0701697659 Serunjogi Sadat (father) or to account number  01021153098893 (DFCU Bank).