In September 2024, little Marwa from Algeria began her battle with a rare and dangerous illness. Doctors in her home country diagnosed her with retinoblastoma, a tumor threatening both her eyesight and her life.
Her family faced limited and daunting treatment options: intravenous chemotherapy, thermal therapy, cryotherapy, and finally the most difficult decision, removing the eye to save her life.
But hope came from Karbala. By chance, Marwa’s father came across a YouTube video featuring Dr. Haider Hamza Al-Aboudi, Head of the Health and Medical Education Authority at the Imam Hussain Holy Shrine, explaining an advanced treatment offered at the Warith Cancer Treatment Center: ophthalmic artery catheterization.
Without hesitation, he sent Marwa’s medical file to the institution. The response was immediate and compassionate: full acceptance of the case, free treatment, free accommodation, and facilitation of all travel and visa procedures.
“From the moment we arrived in Iraq, a private car was waiting at the airport. At the hospital, we were received in a VIP room. I never expected this level of care. Had I not seen that video, my daughter would never have found this treatment,” Marwa’s father said.
This advanced procedure, performed by entering through the femoral artery to reach the eye’s feeding artery, directly targeted the tumor. It spared Marwa from eye removal and lengthy chemotherapy, preserving her hope for sight and a normal life.
Although the disease is rare, the institution reports that in less than two years it has treated more than 130 children with this technique, far exceeding the expected 30 cases per year.
The impact has gone beyond Iraq. Families and doctors from the Gulf and other countries have reached out, inquiring about treatment in Karbala. The answer from the Imam Hussain Holy Shrine and its Health and Medical Education Authority has been clear: “Our doors are open to every child, from any country or nationality.”
Marwa’s father concluded, moved to tears: “I was amazed by the institution, from the doctors and nurses to the reception staff and even the cleaning workers. Everyone treated us with kindness and humanity. I hope Marwa’s story reaches millions, so people know there is a place in Karbala where a human being is treated as a human being.”
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