Maria's Second Chance

For five years, Maria, a 45-year-old mother of four from Honduras, lived with a growing mass in her neck. What started as a small swelling became a massive thyroid goiter that compressed her windpipe and made it difficult to breathe or swallow.

"I couldn't work anymore," Maria recalls. "I couldn't sleep lying down because I would choke. My children were scared."

When the MolGen general surgery mission arrived in Tegucigalpa, Maria's case was flagged as urgent. The goiter had grown to the size of a grapefruit and was beginning to affect her heart.

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Dr. James Okonkwo led the complex surgery to remove the goiter. "It was one of the largest I've seen," he notes. "But Maria was strong, and the surgery went well."

Three days after surgery, Maria was breathing freely for the first time in years. "I feel like a new person," she said. "I can breathe, I can eat, I can sleep. God bless these doctors."

Maria has returned to her work as a seamstress and continues to support her family. She volunteers as a community health advocate, helping identify others who may need surgical care.