• JANE Bwalya being aided by her grandmother Rosemary Chilombo to sit on a chair. She suffers from an enlarged head, which has led to her blindness. Picture by MILDRED KATONGO

By MILDRED KATONGO  –

IT is every child’s dream to get educated and become somebody of repute in society.
However, this dream has increasingly become difficult for nine-year-old Jane Bwalya who at this tender age is struggling with a health condition that has enlarged her head and left her blind.
This condition has all but shattered Jane’s dream for a bright future as she has not even been enrolled in school.
Jane wants to be educated and become a nurse, but has developed an enlarged head, a situation that makes her experience terrible headaches and has left her blind.
The girl, who is being taken care of by her grandmother in Kitwe’s Zambia Township, cannot do anything without being aided.
Her grandmother Rosemary Chilombo narrated to the Copperbelt Times that Bwalya was born with a health condition that has abnormally enlarged her head and has left her blind.
Ms Chilombo said that when the girl was born her parents were told that she had accumulated fluid in her brain, a condition that is called hydrocephalus.
“My granddaughter has a condition that has seen her head enlarged abnormally, this causes her to experience headaches and has left her blind,” she said.
Scholars have defined hydrocephalus as a medical condition in which there is an abnormal accumulation of cerebral-spinal fluid in the brain. This causes increased pressure inside the skull and causes progressive enlargement of the head.
Ms Chilombo said the child has suffered because she has never been to the hospital for further examination of the head.
This is because she lacks the financial capacity to cover medical and logistical expenses for the child get help.
She narrated that Jane’s parents divorced because of the girl’s health condition and that no one could afford to take her to the hospital.
“My grandchild is suffering because I have not taken her to the hospital for further examination. I have not done so because I cannot afford it.  This condition has worsened over the years as it has left her blind,” she said.
Ms Chilombo appealed to well-wishers to assist her financially, to have her granddaughter taken to hospital for further examination and possible treatment.
She said at the moment, it is difficult for her to give the child the right medication because medical experts have not prescribed what drugs are to be administered.
“Jane complains of a headache all the time but I do not give her any medication because I do not know what to give her. If anyone can help me financially I can take this child to the hospital for further examination so that I know what kind of drugs I can administer to her,” she said.