During the last Quarter of 2013, the Philippines was overwhelmed with natural disasters including a major earthquake, outbreaks of dengue fever, leptospirosis plague in post-flood sewage, a lethal strain of measles and the most powerful typhoons in recent history, as well as armed conflict and ethnic cleansing in Zamboanga city. Due to the dramatic number of historic crises, it is extremely difficult to raise funds for chronic illness programs such as cancer and genetic disorders. We receive no government grants or funds or communication from the US embassy. In fact, AAI received less than $850 for the Art of Hope and Healing Program supported by Global Giving donors during September through November. Although AAI worked to save lives in conducting emergency relief, we did not abandone our women and children patients Leveragingwith lethal chronic illnesses. Thanks to our wonderful partners at KrebsAllianz in Germany, the National Cancer Coalition in Florida, and the Department of Health and National Insitutes of Health and the Philippine Cancer Society in Manila, medicines and medical treatment are available. With funds from compassionate Global Giving donors, during September to November 2013 we we were able to transform $850 in cash into more than $169,500 in rare donated medicines such as Cerezyme and Myozyme to keep alive children with gentic diseases such as Pompe and Gaucher and provide backup for the medical exams of women with breast cancer.
We work with the Institute of Human Genetics (IHG) which is one of the service and research oriented institutes of the National Institutes of Health-University of the Philippines Manila (NIH-UP) that specializes in "orphan diseases." Currently, at least six bright and beautiful children who come from families under the poverty line who require monthly injections of these gene replacement medicines to survive are alive thanks to you!! Dr. Mary Anne Chiong, MD, a specialist at the Insitute of Human Genetics says, "The medicines provided by the Asia America Inititaive have made the difference in the surivial of our children with Gaucher and Pompe diseases who would not live beyond the age of 12."
Our donors are persons with modest incomes or resources, yet you have done your part to prove there is kindness in this difficult world. I cannot put into adequate words the gratitude the medical staff, the patients and their families all feel toward you for your simple but profound acts of caring. God bless all who have assisted.
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