By Donna Campbell | Executive Director
This year Aravind celebrates its Golden Jubilee -- that's 50 years of eliminating needless blindness. We've come a long way from that first rented building in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, with just 11 beds for cataract patients. In April, we inaugurated our 15th hospital! When Aravind first opened its doors, our doctors might have seen hundreds of patients -- last year we treated more than six million patients for all types of eye conditions and performed more than 700,000 sight-saving procedures.
But while we might be counting patients by the millions in 2025, behind the numbers are still real people, facing real challenges. Like Mahath's family.
Mahath's parents had tried for eight years to have a baby, before they were blessed with a baby boy. His father was a 45-year-old labourer and his mother was a 38-year-old housewife. Mahath was nearly two months premature and was taken to Aravind Eye Hospital in Tirunelveli to be screened for Retinopathy of Prematurity, a condition common in preemies. During the routine screening, the doctors discovered that the baby had cancer in both eyes.
This would be devastating news for any parent, but especially for Mahath's family, who had been trying for so long to have a child and who couldn't afford expensive treatments -- medical scans, surgery, chemotheraphy, radiation, etc., can add up to more than $1000 for each eye.
Fortunately, all of Mahath's treatment was provided free of charge through Aravind's Ring of Hope program. Mahath is now 18 months old, the cancers in both eyes have regressed, and his vision is developing normally. Mahath is one of nearly 1000 patients who have benefited from our Ring of Hope program for eye cancer since the program was started.
As you would expect, there have been a lot of changes over fifty years. But more importantly, guess what hasn't changed? The generosity and trust of our friends and supporters. Thank you for your belief in Aravind's work and for giving the gift of sight to so many.
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