Seven major surgeries, but no answers yet

By MARK KAPCHANGA

He walked tall with his feet firm on the ground. His academic prowess was unmatched.

At 25, he had completed the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) examinations and held a higher diploma from the Institute of Management of Information Systems.

Having successfully completed his undergraduate studies at the University of Nairobi’s School of Business, he was absorbed at Deloitte & Touche East Africa as a Business Analyst. The future looked bright.

But who would have known that on this day, Vincent Asa Mutai, 28, would be surviving on a single lung, perilously exposed to a complicated medical condition?

What started as a normal cough in May 2007 has exposed him to a life he never expected. "Due to pressure to finish ACCA and university examinations, I ignored it. It eventually put me down," Asa told The Standard.

He was rushed to the Aga Khan University Hospital where he was diagnosed with pulmonary TB at an advanced stage.

"I was admitted to the high dependency unit and put on oxygen and anti-TB treatment."

In less than a month, he was discharged. At this point, his health appeared to improve, but X-ray and CT scan showed significant damage in the left lung.

In January 2008, the cough recurred. This time around it was quite bad as bloody pus accompanied it.

He was referred to a chest specialist in Nairobi Hospital who put him back on anti-TB drugs. "The specialist said that my left lung was now totally damaged."

After consulting several other doctors, he accepted the decision and on August 13, 2008, the lung was removed.

"I was discharged in a record three days. In a week’s time, however, I developed a complication characterised by difficulty in breathing. I was readmitted to the Nairobi Hospital."

Doctors say the complication is known as BronchoPleural Fistula with Empyema, meaning there was a communication between the left chest cavity and the airway — trachea.

Since the left chest space was infected, it accumulated a lot of pus and a chest tube had to be inserted to drain it out.

A rectification to this complication had to be carried out, meaning a second surgery had to be performed.

This was done in October. Unfortunately, the infection reopened the sutures within a week of the operation. Asa was discharged in November 2008, but readmitted in January 2009 in preparation for a third surgery to try close the BPF again.

However, the preparation for the operation took longer than he expected due to the persistent infection. We opted to move from Nairobi Hospital to Coptic Hospital due to the escalating medical bill. While at Coptic, the third operation was done but just like the second one, it backfired."

At this point, Asa was giving up. However, a chest specialist from Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) came in. He transferred him to KNH. His health started picking up. Based on this, the doctor said Asa was ready to face the fourth operation.

It involved pulling of an organ called the omentum from his stomach through the diaphragm to the chest cavity to seal the opening. It seemed successful.

The surgical wound on the side of the chest was, however, now too big and the surgeons had to plan for another operation — the fifth one — to ensure there was no air leak at the chest space. This was done in June 2009, and doctors claimed it was a success.

To date, Asa’s family has spent close to Sh10 million. "I remain unwell and in need of urgent medical attention despite all the surgeries and the numerous prolonged hospital admissions. I now suffer great respiratory discomfort including difficulty in breathing, occasional shortness of breath, persistent cough due to the BronchoPleural fistula, inability to lie on my right side, constrained physical activity, fatigue and chest pains."

Having undergone seven thoracic surgeries with little success, doctors say Asa’s condition can be handled in Israel, United States or India. India, however, is relatively cheaper — Sh2.5 million.

EDITORS NOTE: Wellwishers can help Asa raise the amount to save his life through Kenya Commercial Bank, A/C Name: Vincent Asa Mutai Medical Fund, A/C No: 1129305708, Kipande House Branch.

Donations can be also channelled to his Mpesa account 0721352639 and Zap 0734352639, respectively.