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| Cambodian girl Sovanna Kak, who is estimated to be 15, will undergo surgery in Brisbane to remove a tumour on her jaw bone (seen in her x-ray inset). |
Courtney Trenwith
Brisbane Times (Australia)
A Cambodian teenager will undergo surgery in Brisbane tomorrow to remove a tumour that is eating away her jaw bone.
Sovanna Kak has suffered the painful growth for several years, although she only complained to a doctor a few months ago.
Sovanna, who does not know her date of birth but has been given an estimated age of 15, is from a rural community in Kandal province, about 30 kilometres from the capital Phnom Penh. She arrived in Brisbane on Saturday.
Advertisement: Story continues below Oral and maxillofacial surgeon John Arvier, who will voluntarily perform the surgery at Wesley Hospital, said the benign tumour was destroying the right side of teenager's face.
"It's made an awful mess of the jaw from the corner of the jaw to just below the joint in front of the ear," Dr Arvier said.
"It's quite sore, she can talk all right nd still eat fairly well but ... it's steadily chomping away at her.
"It's eaten away the inside of the jaw, pushing the jaw out, almost to the point where it's eaten the whole jaw bone."
The bone is so badly decomposed Sovanna risks breaking her jaw if she so much as bumps into someone.
Dr Arvier said Sovanna first presented to a doctor in her home town in rural Cambodia and was referred to a dentist, who then sent her to a dental hospital but the job was too complicated to be carried out in the former Khmer Rouge heartland.
A Cambodian doctor alerted the Australian and New Zealand Association of Oral and Maxillofacial surgeons who, with Rotary Oceanic Medical Aid for Children and Wesley Hospital, brought Sovanna to Australia.
The girl's mother and the Cambodian doctor are also in Brisbane, as well as a Cambodian student doctor who will learn the procedure with the hope of performing it in the developing country.
Dr Arvier said the tumour was not uncommon, including in Australia, but rarely progressed to such a debilitating point as Sovanna's condition had.
He said while the three-hour surgery was relatively straight forward, it would have a large impact on Sovanna's life and health.
A metal plate will be inserted to replace the bone that has been eaten away. If bone did not regrow, bone graft may have to be inserted, Dr Arvier said.
"She's very, very nervous," he said.
"[The tumour] was just bad luck. This is one of those things that can develop for no special reason."
Sovanna is expected to remain in Australia for several weeks and is staying with a Cambodian pastor.
3 comments:
Koh Tral Island must not be forgotten
By Ms. Rattana Keo
Why do Koh Tral Island, known in Vietnam as Phu Quoc, a sea and land area covering proximately over 10,000 km2 [Note: the actual land size of Koh Tral itself is 574 square kilometres (222 sq miles)] have been lost to Vietnam by whose treaty? Why don’t Cambodia government be transparent and explain to Cambodia army at front line and the whole nation about this? Why don't they include this into education system? Why?
Cambodian armies are fighting at front line for 4.6 km2 on the Thai border and what's about over 10,000km2 of Cambodia to Vietnam. Nobody dare to talk about it! Why? Cambodian armies you are decide the fate of your nation, Cambodian army as well as Cambodian people must rethink about this again and again. Is it fair?
Koh Tral Island, the sea and land area of over 10,000 square kilometres have been lost to Vietnam by the 1979 to 1985 treaties. The Cambodian army at front line as well as all Cambodian people must rethink again about these issues. Are Cambodian army fighting to protect the Cambodia Nation or protecting a very small group that own big lands, big properties or only protecting a small group but disguising as protecting the Khmer nation?
The Cambodian army at front lines suffer under rain, wind, bullets, bombs, lack of foods, lack of nutrition and their families have no health care assistance, no securities after they died but a very small group eat well, sleep well, sleep in first class hotel with air conditioning system with message from young girls, have first class medical care from oversea medical treatments, they are billionaires, millionaires who sell out the country to be rich and make the Cambodian people suffer everyday.
Who signed the treaty 1979-1985 that resulted in the loss over 10,000 km2 of Cambodia??? Why they are not being transparent and brave enough to inform all Cambodians and Cambodian army at front line about these issues? Why don't they include Koh Tral (Koh Tral size is bigger than the whole Phom Phen and bigger than Singapore [Note: Singapore's present land size is 704 km2 (271.8 sq mi)]) with heap of great natural resources, in the Cambodian education system?
Look at Hun Sen's families, relatives and friends- they are billionaires, millionaires. Where did they get the money from when we all just got out of war with empty hands [in 1979]? Hun Sen always say in his speeches that Cambodia had just risen up from the ashes of war, just got up from Year Zero with empty hands and how come they are billionaires, millionaires but 90% of innocent Cambodian people are so poor and struggling with their livelihood every day?
Smart Khmer girl Ms. Rattana Keo,
GOOD LUCK KID .HOPE THEY CAN HELP YOU.
cambodia should strengthen dental care in our cambodia. it seemed like dental diseases are one of the major issue in the inadequate dental clinic and care in cambodia. cambodia should look into expanding dental service to the country.
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