When a baby is sick, parents will do anything to get their child needed treatment. In the case of 4-month-old Ella Shalmon, her parents are trying to raise money for a surgery to help with a rare birth defect she was born with that connects her respiratory and digestive systems. The reason why they’re raising money is the fact that it costs $430,000. Who has that kind of money simply lying around? Not many.
The Israeli family, who are trying to treat their daughter in a pediatric hospital in Boston, recently explained the situation to ILTV. Adi and Nadav Shalmon appeared on the news channel, explaining that Ella was born premature after a diagnosis of polyhydramnios, an excess of fluid in the amniotic sack, a premature labor and a C-section, according to YNet News.
Sadly, after her birth, it was discovered that Ella had esophageal atresia, a rare medical defect connecting the esophagus to the respiratory system. While Ella has had one surgery so far, she has suffered from lung infection, kidney failure, and apnea. This is when her doctors in Israel said the only thing that will save Ella’s life is a complicated surgery performed at Boston’s pediatric hospital.
Adi told YNet News how she believes Ella has a strong will to live:
“She has been through such difficult things in the first four months of her life, and yet she conveys to us daily her instinct to survive, and she shows us how she wants to live. We tell her, ‘Breathe, everything will be fine,’ and gradually, she raises her heart rate and goes back to breathing, as if she’s listening to us and says, ‘I want to live; don’t give up on me.'”
The Kav Lachayim charity is helping raise funds–as of now, $63,000 has been donated. Those who wish to can help by donating online via credit card or PayPal–or by check to Kay Lachayim for Ella Shalmon, Gonen 15, Petah Tikva, Israel.
You can watch the Shalmons talk about their daughter’s plight below:
