Baby with liver problems gets Rohani's attention

The suffering of six-month-old Adra Afieya Adzriefaiz, who suffers from liver problems, has attracted the attention of Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Rohani Abdul Karim. On Saturday, Rohani visited the baby at the Paediatric Ward of Universiti Malaya Medical Centre (PPUM), where she also handed over a cheque for RM20,000, contributed by the National Welfare Foundation, to Adra Afieya's father, Adzriefaiz Adzlan, 29, a TV9 personality. Speaking to reporters later, Rohani said she hoped that the people and corporate companies in the country would come forward to help the baby. Adra Afieya suffers from Biliary Atresia, a disease of the bile duct, causing it to become inflamed and blocked, a condition which caused damage to the liver, where she would need a heart transplant. PPUM paediatric consultant Professor Dr Lee Way Seah said PPUM had the expertise to perform the heart transplant, but did not have the facility to do it. However, he said it could be done in Singapore where a few Malaysian children had underwent the heart transplant there with success. In Adra Afieya's case, the cost of the heart transplant is about RM500,000, he added. Dr Lee said he did not foresee any problems in Adzriefaiz donating his heart to Adra Afieya. However, he said, checks would have to be conducted to determine the compatibility of the donor and the recipient. Meanwhile, Adzriefaiz hoped the people would pray for his daughter's health and also that the heart transplant could be done as soon as possible. So far, RM200,000 has been raised through a campaign in the social media, he said. Those who wish to donate to Adra Afieya could do so through Adzriefaiz Adzlan's Maybank account 562227327760. In an unrelated matter, Rohani conveyed her condolences to the families of the eight teenagers who drowned in Sungai Muar, Segamat Friday.