Impact Report

Priscilla

Location: Hospital Mascota & Cento National de Radioterapia, Managua, Nicaragua

Imagine this:  Your 13-year old daughter suddenly loses the ability to walk and talk.  Her vision deteriorates.  She begins to have seizures.  You take her to the hospital and it turns out she has a brain tumor.  Doctors say the best treatment would be to use an advanced chemotherapy drug.  The only problem?  The hospital doesn’t have access to the drug.

This happened to Priscilla and her very poor, but close-knit and hardworking family.  They live in Nicaragua – the poorest country in Central America.  The country’s pubic hospitals have a critical shortage of essential and chemotherapy drugs.

Priscilla was in the care of Dr. Segueira, the Pediatric Oncologist at Hospital Mascota in Managua. All they could offer was a shunt to reduce the swelling in her brain, followed by radiation therapy. The radiation helped a bit – she could just barely manage to walk again.  But she still couldn’t talk and her vision didn’t improve.  After the radiation therapy, the hospital could only offer steroids to reduce the swelling and anti-seizure medicines. There was nothing to prevent the tumor from growing larger again.

But, thanks to NCC—and our generous supporters—Priscilla got the treatment she desperately needed.  Merck & Co, one of our valued pharmaceutical partners, supplied the vital drug, called Temodar.  Within a few treatments, Priscilla is now walking with increased strength and agility, she is speaking again, her vision is tremendously improved.  And, best of all, to Priscilla, she can return to school.

This is the kind of impact your support of NCC can have.  You give a little girl in Nicaragua the chance to be healthy again.  You give her family the chance to be with their vibrant, beautiful little girl.

If you’ve given in the past to support NCC’s work, thank you so much.  You can see the impact your support makes.

To make a gift to help other children like Priscilla, click here

Background Information

Merck’s Temodar is specialized first line chemotherapy for glioblastoma multiforme and anaplastic astrocytoma, (brain tumor). Because it directly targets the actual tumor it is often extremely effective in cases of inoperable brain tumors. NCC has partnered with Merck to provide substantial quantities of Temodar to public hospitals Managua, Nicaragua, as well as to the countries of Honduras Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Panama and Peru.

Merck - NCC Cares - Nicaragua - Temodar