A Nigerian graduate awaiting the mandatory national service has been diagnosed with a hole in the heart disease. 28-year-old Rafiu Sikiru Adekunle begging for survival is calling on Nigerians to help raise N8m for surgery.
Rafiu who studied Accounting at the Ekiti State University was awaiting his call-up letter for the one year mandatory National Youth Service when he got down with an ailment which later turned out to be a hole in the heart disease after series of tests.
The young graduate receiving treatment at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH), Ikeja told National Wire about his plight. “I was waiting for my youth corps when I was hit with this ailment. I just discovered I was having a swollen leg, tummy and blood stained eyeball and I couldn’t sleep anymore for over five days before I decided to come home to Lagos,” he narrated.
Stating further, he said, “I was receiving treatments at LASUTH and AfriGlobal both at Ikeja, Lagos but I was admitted at LASUTH for treatment for almost three weeks in May 2017.”
Appreciating his parents for their support so far, the young graduate who intends to build a great career in accounting said, “My troubled parents have been wonderful. They were the ones that took care of my hospital bills and have been buying drugs. They paid for series of tests prescribed during my admission. I am still on drugs and they have kept buying. I thank God for them and now appealing to the good people of Nigeria and the government to come to my aid.”
On how much is needed to correct the ailment, young Rafiu said, “Apart from what has been spent already, I need about eight million Naira (N8M) to facilitate a surgery and hopefully by the grace of God I would live. There have been people who survived this same ailment because of God’s mercy who brought the needed financial and moral support. Please I am appealing to Nigerians to help me.
“We consulted the Kanu Heart Foundation, we paid the administrative fees and I was attended to. They are wonderful and the initiative has helped a lot of Nigerians to survive. They are flying me to India only if we are able to raise the N8m which covers for the surgery and other logistics on our part,” he said.
Talking further, the patient said, “My parents have been soliciting for funds and this has put all their plans and other projects on hold. They have spent all they have on the treatments and tests.”
“My father is a developer and property agent while my mother is a trader. We live at 15, Pipeline Street, Alagbole, Akute, Ogun State. I can forward all the papers of the tests, drugs, and addresses of where the treatments were carried out to prove I am genuine. Please Nigerians should come to my rescue,” he prayed.
Also called “Adult Congenital Heart Disease, hole in the heart is a malfunctioning of the heart that is present at birth. Meanwhile some congenital heart defects are very minor and will never cause health problems according to ottawaheart.ca which also states that others are very serious and complicated. These defects are usually discovered in infancy or early childhood due to symptoms and may be surgically repaired at that time.
