Sameth, a Cambodian boy, recovers 80% Of His vision in the right eye thanks to the Fundación Fernández-Vega
In 2017, when Sameth was 10 years old he had an accident due to the explosion of an anti-personnel mine. This caused him several wounds to his body as well as full vision loss with his left eye, and part of his vision with his right eye. However, thanks to the work of Fundación Fernández-Vega, NGO SAUCE and Fundación Real Madrid, the young boy has recovered 80% of his vision with the right eye. Thanks to the collaboration of the three entities, Sameth was able to travel to Oviedo to undergo surgery.
The surgery, coordinated by Professor Luis Fernández-Vega, medical director of the Instituto, together with Dr Eva Villota, specialist in retina and vitreous and Dr José F. Alfonso, head of the Department of Cornea and Crystalline, enabled the boy to recover his vision and, consequently, his life.
“When we first saw Sameth in Cambodia we gave him some eyeglasses, but then the idea of bringing him to Oviedo to undergo surgery and help him lead a normal life was born from the three entities,” stated Professor Fernández-Vega. Thus, Sameth has been able to leave behind everything that has happened to him and face the future: go to school, play with his friends and, especially, enjoy one of his passions, football.
“Sameth has been an enthusiast of the sports and events project of the Foundation for three years as his great dream is to play football,” says Rosa Roncal head of the International Area of the Fundación Real Madrid, who has highlighted that the boy is full of energy and he channels it through sports. “One should specially highlight Sameth’s sense of respect and teamwork, as well as the discipline and self-esteem that he has acquired during these years at the Sports and Events School of the Fundación Real Madrid.”
As for how Sameth has recovered his life thanks to the surgery, the president of Sauce was happy to highlight that “going back to Cambodia, to school, having recovered his vision, has been a 180º turn in his life. He will now have many opportunities that he would have otherwise missed. Furthermore, he will also change many lives around him thanks to this intervention.” “Inspired by the example of Kike Figaredo, we take every opportunity to change the lives of those less fortunate. In Sameth’s case it has been posible thanks to the generosity of our collaborators and friends,” reminded Javier Álvarez- Cienfuegos, president of Sauce.
As for the work performed by the healthcare professionals of the IOFV in order to achieve a success in this surgery, Professor Luis Fernández-Vega stated the difficulty of the intervention. “It was complicated. The crystalline was altered and displaced and was removed using a procedure that enables subsequent reconstruction of the area as well as carrying out a vitrectomy,” he explained. Following this procedure, the physicians of the IOFV placed an intraocular lens on the remains of the crystalline that could be preserved.
Every year, the Fundación Fernández-Vega travels to Cambodia, where it helps the NGO SAUCE to check-up the eyesight, diagnose pathologies and give away eyeglasses to those most in need.
