April 28, 2000

There was little hope a few months ago for a seriously ill Cambodian girl living in an orphanage in Phnom Penh, the country's capital. That is until Nancy Hendrie, MD, a Massachusetts pediatrician, found the child and brought her to the MGH for treatment of severe gastrointestinal complications and a newly diagnosed brain tumor.

Mom Srey (meaning girl) Rath (meaning orphan), who will turn 2 in May, was being cared for in the back room of an orphanage, which was primitive by American standards. Doctors in Cambodia had expected the child to die because of problems with her lower bowel, so she received minimal treatment.

Hendrie, however, had a different opinion. Having spent three years working with abandoned children in Cambodia, she is a champion of the so-called "lost causes." Hendrie works with orphaned children through a nonprofit organization she founded called The Sharing Foundation. Working with the Adopt Cambodia adoption agency, Hendrie hopes ultimately to find a family in the United States to give Mom a home after she receives much-needed medical care.

Mom, who weighs a mere 11 pounds, was born with a congenital disorder that affects her entire gastrointestinal system. At birth, doctors found she had no anal opening, which required an emergency colostomy to dispose of her body's waste. "Her vast intestinal problems led to a growth delay," says Hendrie. "Plus she had other anomalies such as an extra finger on each hand and an extra toe on one foot."

According to Hendrie, another reason Mom didn't thrive is because the living conditions in Cambodia are very primitive — even in comparison to other Third World countries. Located in southeastern Asia, Cambodia has a population of about 11 million. The life expectancy is 49 years, and many children don't survive to see the age of 2.

To help this child, Hendrie called two former colleagues at MassGeneral Hospital for Children, Dan Ryan, MD, a pediatric surgeon, and Ron Kleinman, MD, chief of the Pediatric Gastrointestinal Unit. Both immediately agreed to help.

"We have always done our best to respond to the needs of children who can't receive proper care near their own homes," says Kleinman. "We always try to make a difference in every child's life; this patient was no different."

Mom received a temporary medical visa to come to the United States and has spent several weeks at the MGH undergoing three surgeries. Her extra fingers and toe were removed, and she had surgery to repair her intestinal problems.

According to Hendrie, the original plan for Mom's care was to have an additional surgery to close her colostomy, and then she would return to Cambodia while the search continued for an adoptive family. More medical complications were discovered, however; Mom was diagnosed with a brain tumor.

"Her brain tumor is in a critical area called the hypothalamus," says William E. Butler, MD, a pediatric neurosurgeon for MassGeneral Hospital for Children. "Our neuroradiologists performed imaging studies of the tumor and analyzed it with a new noninvasive technique called magnetic resonance spectroscopy. These studies suggest that the tumor is benign. This tumor type is not aggressive, so she will not need surgery."

Mom's outcome still is uncertain, but Hendrie finds hope in the care that the child has received at the MGH. "It's absolutely incredible that the MGH staff just said, 'of course we'll take care of her,' " says Hendrie. "She had absolutely no future in Cambodia, and she still has an uncertain future here. But the truth is, we had to give her a chance."

For more information about The Sharing Foundation, visit the organization's website at www.sharingfoundation.org.