We came to a dilapidated house, located deep in a rural garden in Phu Hoa hamlet, Cai Nhum commune. This level 4 house was built with state support more than 20 years ago, when the family was still a poor household, now it has seriously deteriorated, the roof is leaking in many places, no longer ensuring sun and rain protection.
After a year of fighting a serious illness, Mr. Le Thanh Phuong (born 1968)'s health has clearly declined, his body is thin, and he has difficulty walking. The family's economy, which was already struggling, is now even more exhausted when the income is almost gone.
According to the medical record at Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital, Mr. Phuong was diagnosed with stage IIIC rectal cancer. The tumor had spread outside the intestinal wall, affecting many lymph nodes in the body, forcing him to undergo a long period of treatment with radiation therapy, chemotherapy and surgery.
Mr. Phuong said that before, he was the breadwinner of the family, working as a security guard at a company with a stable income. Since the onset of the disease, all living and treatment expenses have fallen on his wife's shoulders. "Regarding borrowing nearly 50 million VND from outside, the debts to the brothers in the family cannot be fully calculated," Mr. Phuong said.
According to him, the total treatment cost has reached about 160 million VND - a figure far exceeding the family's ability. Each week, radiation therapy alone costs about 4 million VND, lasting for many months, causing the debt to pile up.
There were times when I wanted to stop treatment because I had no money left, but thinking I still had my wife and children, I tried to hold on every day," he added.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan - a neighbor of the family - said that Mr. and Mrs. Phuong lived in a small house in the middle of a degraded field, with only about 500m2 of cultivated land, not enough to create a stable income for the family.
According to Ms. Ngan, since Mr. Phuong fell ill, the burden fell on his wife, Ms. Dang Thi Cam Tien. "Ms. Tien has to work as a hired laborer, doing whatever anyone hires her to do, income is precarious, sometimes there is, sometimes not," Ms. Ngan added.
According to Mr. Huynh Van Phuong - Head of Phu Hoa hamlet, Cai Nhum commune, Mr. Le Thanh Phuong's family circumstances are particularly difficult. After a long period of treatment for a serious illness, the family's economy was exhausted, and there was also a large debt.
In the old house, amidst patchy walls and leaky roofs, the man who used to be a pillar now only knows how to fight each day with illness. Mr. Phuong's journey to fight for life is still long, but ahead are countless difficulties.
Mr. Le Thanh Phuong's situation really needs the joint help of philanthropists, so that he has more opportunities to continue treatment, save his life and reduce the burden on his family," added the head of Phu Hoa hamlet.
All help for life situation LD26095 please send to Tam Long Vang Charity Social Fund - 51 Hang Bo, Hoan Kiem District, Hanoi. Account number (STK) 113000000758 at Vietinbank Hoan Kiem Branch, Hanoi; Account number: 0021000303088 - at Vietcombank Hanoi Branch; Account number: 12410001122556 - at BIDV Hoan Kiem Branch.
Or contact directly Mr. Le Thanh Phuong, Phu Hoa hamlet, Cai Nhum commune, Vinh Long province: Phone number: 0795.496.286
Or scan the QR code:
