Dubai: His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, has sponsored the treatment of a Jordanian child, Katia Abu Al-Saud, aged one year and four months, who suffers from spinal muscular atrophy. She is now able to receive treatment at Al Jalila Children's Hospital in Dubai, according to an announcement by the Government of Dubai Media Office.Omar Abu Al-Saud, the father of the child, said the decision of Sheikh Mohammed restored hope to the family after a long journey of anxiety and suffering. He stressed that words could not express the extent of his gratitude for this humanitarian gesture that gave his daughter a new opportunity for treatment.He added: “We extend our sincere thanks and gratitude to His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum for sponsoring Katia’s treatment. We also thank everyone who stood by us and contributed to conveying our daughter’s voice and message to His Highness. Every person who supported us or shared her story was a partner in this hope that we are living today.”Noor, the mother of the young girl, expressed her thanks and appreciation to Sheikh Mohammed after he responded to her appeal and undertook to treat her daughter in a medical treatment that amounts to about Dh8.8 million.After responding to her appeal, the mother expressed her deep gratitude and thanks to His Highness, stressing that his support for her daughter will remain appreciated and appreciated by her and Katia for life. She said: “We have always known you to be quick to do good.” She added in her message via her Instagram account: “I extend my deepest thanks and gratitude for responding to our appeal and saving my daughter’s life... Thank you very much for saving my daughter’s life before it was too late.” Katia’s mother had appealed to His Highness in a video she posted on her account, requesting him to intervene to help her daughter, whose condition doctors in Jordan confirmed could not be treated in her country. She noted that her hope, after God, was in the Al Jalila Children’s Hospital, which Sheikh Mohammed founded.The mother explained that her daughter's treatment requires a hefty cost of up to $2.4 million, equivalent to about Dh8.8 million, which was beyond the family’s ability to afford.Katia’s mother said that doctors in Jordan informed her that her daughter’s condition needed follow-up and treatment in Dubai, so she appealed to Sheikh Mohammed to give her daughter a chance to receive treatment at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital.Behind the moment of joy experienced by the family, with the announcement that Sheikh Mohammed would sponsor Katia’s treatment, lies a long journey of anxiety and the search for an accurate diagnosis, which began in the first months of the child’s life, before turning into a race against time to save her.Katia’s mother recounted the details of that trip, confirming that her daughter was born after a normal pregnancy and delivery, and left the hospital the next day in good health, and initially showed no signs of concern.She added that after about six months, the family began to notice that Katia was lagging behind in achieving normal developmental milestones compared to other children her age, such as being able to sit or stand. She noted that the paediatrician initially reassured them, explaining that some children may be slightly delayed in development, and advised them to wait a while.Katia’s mother said that doctors in Jordan informed her that her daughter’s condition needed follow-up and treatment in Dubai, so she appealed to Sheikh Mohammed to give her daughter a chance to receive treatment at Al Jalila Children’s Hospital. Picture credit: SuppliedShe said the concern increased when Katia was eight months old, as she was unable to sit up or even support her head on her own, which prompted the doctor to urgently refer her to a neurologist, after which a long journey of examinations began, including magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, clinical examinations, and genetic analysis, in addition to examinations of the parents, in the hope of finding out the cause of her condition.She added that the test results initially ruled out a number of possibilities, before genetic analysis finally revealed that Katia had spinal muscular atrophy, a rare disease that affects the nerve cells responsible for muscle movement due to a lack of the protein needed to nourish them, which gradually leads to muscle weakness, starting with the limbs and then extending to the rest of the body. The condition may reach the muscles responsible for breathing if it is not treated in time.She explained that the doctors confirmed to the family that Katia is still in the first stage of the disease, which is the stage that gives her the best opportunity to benefit from the treatment, noting that the treatment consists of a single dose of gene therapy that works to stop the deterioration of the disease and helps the body produce the protein necessary to support nerve cells. However, this treatment is not available in Jordan, and its cost is about Dh8.8 million.Noor said: “We did not give up, and we consulted many doctors, and we looked for any opportunity that could save our daughter, but the time factor was putting pressure on us, because every day that passes without treatment means losing a new part of her muscle strength, so we resorted to launching a humanitarian appeal, and we shared her story with everyone, and we were ready to travel with her to any country where treatment is available if we could secure it.”Between the moment of diagnosis that turned the family’s life upside down, and the moment when Sheikh Mohammed announced his sponsorship of Katia’s treatment, the family lived through months of searching and waiting. Now, the journey of pain has turned into a new beginning, with the title of ‘Hope’.Noor emphasised that her greatest wish throughout the past months was to see her daughter get her chance at treatment before the disease robbed her of her ability to move. She noted that Sheikh Mohammed’s response fulfilled this dream and gave Katia a new chance at life, at a time when the family was racing against time to save her.The sick child's father, Omar Abu Al-Saud, said: “Words cannot express the extent of my gratitude for this humanitarian gesture that has given my daughter a new opportunity for treatment.”
