BAYANDA Nene’s hands won’t stop growing and it’s making his life miserable.
The 11-year-old from Nkolokotho Village in Mtubatuba, northern KZN, is unable to do basic tasks like bathing or preparing food.
His sister Nokulunga (24) said seeing her brother struggle was painful.
She said he was born with a swollen hand and their late mum tried to get help from different health facilities but with no luck.
“Back then, his hands were not so big but as he grows, they grow more. Before my mum died, they used to send her from pillar to post but she didn’t get any help. She never got to learn what was the cause of the growth,” she said.
Nokulunga said after their mum died in 2017, their gogo took over the responsibility of raising them.
“My granny continued to seek help as his hands were growing in an abnormal way and my brother was in a lot of pain,” she said.
Nokulunga said her gogo was about to go to Inkosi Albert Luthuli Hospital in Durban for help but then Bayanda could not be admitted due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Gogo kept calling the hospital to check if they could help but in 2020, she eventually lost hope and gave up.
“She prays every day that Bayanda will get help so he can live a normal life,” she said.
Nokulunga said she wished the family had money to take her brother to see a specialist. She appealed to anyone who could help to come forward.
KZN health department spokesman Mdu Ncalane said he was aware of the matter and had been in contact with the family to take the boy to the hospital to see doctors on Monday, 20 June.
