"Sharing the Value of Life"... 175 Children in Asia Treated for Heart Disease

[Anchor]

Incheon City has been carrying on a support project for 20 years to help children in Asian regions who were born with heart disease but cannot receive treatment due to financial hardships. So far, 175 children have undergone surgery and treatment in Incheon to recover their health.

Here is a report by Reporter Song In-ho.

[Reporter]

This two-year-old child was born in the Central Asian country of Kyrgyzstan.

Born with a heart condition that caused fingers and lips to turn blue, the child could not afford treatment due to financial difficulties until receiving free surgery at a university hospital in Incheon.

[Mirgul / Mother of the 2-year-old child from Kyrgyzstan: My son was diagnosed with a hole in his heart. But the cost was too high, so we couldn't afford the medical expenses.]

This six-year-old child, who was born with both heart and lung diseases, also received surgical treatment in South Korea and has become healthy enough to dream of becoming a swimmer.

[Jeankul / Mother of the 6-year-old child from Kyrgyzstan: We got a call from South Korea saying we could come for treatment. I was truly happy and came with great trust.]

Since 2007, a total of 175 pediatric heart disease patients have recovered their health after receiving surgery and treatment in Incheon.

They come from various countries including Mongolia, Vietnam, Cambodia, the Philippines, and Uzbekistan. This was made possible thanks to Incheon City, two local university hospitals, and private organizations joining forces to continue the medical support project for 20 years.

The number of people examined locally by South Korean medical staff is approaching 6,800.

[Choi Chang-hyu / Professor of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, Gachon University Gil Medical Center: There are many children who cannot receive surgery because if they miss the timing, the risk becomes too high, or due to financial circumstances or overly long waiting lists, so I selected the support recipients in my own way.]

Incheon City plans to continuously expand its medical support project that transcends national borders to share the value of life.

(Video by: Lim Dong-guk, Footage courtesy of: Incheon City)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.