8-months-old Ademola Urgently Needs N5m for Hole in the Heart Surgery

Rebecca Ejifoma

Eight-months-old baby, Ademola Adekoya, urgently needs N5 million to save his life and has less than two months only.

Baby Adekoya was diagnosed with Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) after multiple tests were carried out, as shown in the documents made available to THISDAY.

According to research, ventricular septal defect is a common heart defect most often present at birth, but it can occur in adults after surgery or a heart attack. It involves a hole in the wall between the heart’s lower chambers.

Shortly after his birth this January, baby Ademola was said to have fallen sick and was taken to the General Hospital Ikorodu for a medical check. What the parents thought was a minor baby illness turned out to be VSD.

Speaking to THISDAY, the mother, Mrs. Hannah Adekoya, narrated that when she took her baby to the hospital, the doctor told her that her son had an infection. “So, they placed him on drips and medication.

“The doctor checked him again and noticed he had mono in his chest. So the doctor recommended an X-ray. We did it. In the report of the X-ray it showed he has Cevenicat disease. After that, the doctor recommended an echocardiogram for the baby at the Afriglobal Facility.”

When she got a call from the Ikorodu General Hospital, she was referred to LASUTH Ayike House since the general hospital does not attend to such cases. “When I got to LASUTH, I was able to see a cardiologist. They gave me an appointment to come every three months. I used to go during the appointed time.

“Last month, they called and said the hole in my baby could not be closed, that the baby is having VSD and that the hole is of moderate size. It can only be closed only through surgery. They told me the bill is in millions of naira – N5 million.”

And with the options that the surgery could only be at Babcock or abroad, Adekoya took her baby to Babcock to make enquiries. “Getting there, we started all over; they did the echo test again and it still showed the same problem. Later they gave us the bill for the surgery, and that we have to do it within two months,” she lamented profusely.

In her plea, she called on all Nigerians to help save her child “Please I need Nigerians to assist me. I and a graduate. My husband is a graduate too. We got married in 2019. I don’t have a job. My husband is working but we can’t afford this big amount.

“This is our first child. I beg Nigerians to help me. He is my first child. I don’t want to lose this child. He is my life. Please help me.”

While donations can be made to the UBA account 2213288367 Daniel Ademola Adekoya, the family can be reached on 08169230042.

Caption: Ademola Adekoya