“Are you going to keep me here to die?” Ruth asked, her voice small but insistent. Her belly was swollen, her breath shallow, and yet her spirit refused to surrender. She was only five years old, but she knew something was wrong, something no child should ever have to understand.
It began with a simple stomachache. Bright and full of life, Ruth was wrapping up primary one and dreaming of the next class. But the pain didn’t go away. It grew. And so did something inside her belly. Her mother remembers when Ruth said, “I feel something growing.” That sentence changed everything.
They sought help, first at a local clinic, then at Gulu Medical and Imaging Consultants, and finally at Gulu Regional Referral Hospital. Each visit brought more questions, more referrals, and more fear. By the time they reached St. Mary’s Hospital, Lacor, for a biopsy, Ruth’s belly had doubled in size. Her life was slipping away.
Christmas approached, but instead of a festive mood, Ruth’s parents were preparing for something else entirely. Dr. Sande Ojara recommended urgent surgery, but Lacor couldn’t perform it. So, in consultation with Dr. Buga, Ruth was referred to Mulago ICU, and there, she was diagnosed with an immature teratoma and placed on emergency chemotherapy.
But the treatment didn’t go well. Ruth suffered a stroke. Her body swelled. Her voice disappeared. “She talked like a newborn baby,” her mother said, with tears tracing the memory. After two months of physiotherapy, Ruth was placed back on chemo. Four cycles later, there was still no improvement. Her belly continued to swell.
Eventually, the doctors said the case was too complicated. Surgery was no longer an option. Ruth was discharged and referred back home for palliative care.
They returned home, waited, and prayed relentlessly. Ruth kept asking, “Can’t you see my stomach is swelling?” Her parents couldn’t bear it. They called Dr. Sande again. He urged them to return to Lacor hospital.
She was rushed back to Lacor and placed on oxygen. Doctors tried draining the fluid from her belly, which worked for a day. She ate and slept. Her parents slept for the first time in weeks. But the swelling returned, and her oxygen was increased. Her life was hanging by a thread.
In an emergency meeting, the surgical, gynecological, and pediatric teams at Lacor made a bold decision: they would operate. Ruth’s father was in the middle of his exams, and he didn’t hesitate. “That’s all I ever wanted, for someone to take a bold step.”
The surgery lasted eight hours. Ruth suffered two cardiac arrests and survived.
Ruth with her family
Two months later, we visited Ruth’s home in Lawiyadul. She was laughing, running, and alive. Her father said, “Ruth’s healing has added years to my life. People who had lost hope now believe God exists.”
On September 19th, 2025, Ruth returned for review. And for three months, there has been no trace of the disease. She remains under our watchful care.
According to the World Health Organization, 400,000 children are diagnosed with cancer every year. In low- and middle-income countries, only 20% survive.
Ruth is more than a survivor. She is a symbol of hope, a voice for the voiceless, and proof that sometimes, miracles are born from the courage to say, “I won’t give up.”
