Fatimah Battles a Malignant Disease and Clings to Her University Dream
When Cancer Meets Poverty
Amman3 min read
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In the month of awareness and spreading hope for cancer fighters, calls are renewed to support cancer patients and stand by them, especially those who face the disease under harsh economic conditions, where treatment alone is not the challenge, but the costs of transportation, housing, and living become additional burdens that weigh down the journey of the disease.
In a small rented house in one of the distant Aqaba villages, Fatima lives with her parents and six siblings, under difficult financial circumstances, which could not take away her dream of completing her university education, even after the disease became a harsh part of her life details.
Fatima, a student at Al-Hussein Bin Talal University in Ma'an, is currently undergoing the final stages of cancer treatment and suffers from blood tumors, but the disease has not prevented her from continuing her studies. Rather, the university has remained for her a space of hope, a breath that helps her face the treatment journey and cling to life.
Fatima has completed more than half of her university journey, and one of the philanthropists has covered her tuition fees, but other burdens remain on her and her family, primarily the accumulated university housing fees, which prevented her from returning to the female student housing, and her health condition does not allow her to commute daily between her family home in one of the Aqaba villages and her university in Ma'an, as the distance is long, and commuting is exhausting and costly, while she needs rest and stability during her treatment stages.
Fatima receives her treatment in one of the government hospitals in Amman, as the treatment she needs is not available in Aqaba, which forces her to travel frequently to the capital, and sometimes stay overnight there, accompanied by a family member, before returning to Aqaba. This journey is repeated with her, with the costs of transportation, accommodation, food, and medical expenses, adding a new burden to a low-income family.
Fatima's father is retired and his health condition no longer allows him to work, and the family's monthly income does not exceed 300 Jordanian dinars, while the house is rented, and the electricity is cut off due to accumulated bills, and three of their children are still in school and two others are in university, while her mother is a housewife and has no source of income.
With the accumulation of obligations, the family has become unable to meet all their needs, and even considering selling the almost dilapidated furniture of the house to secure the costs of treatment trips has become a matter before them.
Despite this, Fatima still clings to her university and her dream of graduating, and she sees in the study a psychological support that helps her cross the days of treatment. Today, she needs a stand from the well-wishers to secure the costs of her treatment and transportation, and to help her pay off the accumulated university housing fees, so that she does not have to give up on the path she has covered more than half of, and the reason is a financial amount not exceeding 500 Jordanian dinars.
Her family has knocked on the door of goodness through "Al-Rai", hoping to find someone who extends a helping hand to continue Fatima's treatment and studies together.
Al-Rai has the case details, phone number, and all the information related to her health and family situation for those wishing to provide assistance, and Fatima is a pseudonym, to preserve the girl's privacy and the dignity of her family.
