Six-year-old Asad Ullah spends his days in a hospital ward, clutching a faded stuffed toy and humming songs from his favorite cartoons. But behind his bright smile lies a painful reality: Asad is fighting retinoblastoma, a rare and aggressive eye cancer that has already stolen his right eye. Now, as he undergoes chemotherapy at Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital’s Centre for Eye Cancer, the goal is to save his remaining eye and protect his future from permanent darkness.
Asad’s story began in Domel, a small town of district Attock, where his family first noticed a faint, unsettling glow in his right eye. Struggling with poverty and unaware of the gravity of his symptoms, they could not access specialized care in time. By the time they reached Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital, surgeons had no choice but to remove the right eye to stop the cancer’s spread. Now the hospital’s team is pouring every resource into shielding his left eye from the same fate.
Asad is receiving chemotherapy for his eye tumor. Chemo sessions leave him weak and nauseous, but Asad greets nurses with a grin and doodles abstracts during brief respites. His mother, Saima, wipes away tears as she speaks about his son.
“He asks when he can go back home and play with his friends.” she says.
“Losing his other eye would mean losing everything—school, play, independence,”
Saima whispers, her voice trembling. “We live moment to moment, trusting the doctors and God.
For now, Asad’s world revolves around hospital corridors and his mother’s lullabies. But with each chemotherapy cycle, hope flickers brighter. The Centre for Eye Cancer, known for its advanced ocular oncology (eye cancer) program and world-class free eye cancer treatment, has become his family’s last hope. The family clings to the belief that his remaining eye will heal, that his dreams will outlast the darkness threatening to engulf his future.
The Centre for Eye Cancer at Al-Shifa Trust Eye Hospital in Rawalpindi stands as Pakistan’s only exclusive facility dedicated to eye cancer offering free, world-class cancer care to all patients, irrespective of socioeconomic status. As a pioneer in the field, the Centre combines cutting-edge technology and specialized expertise to deliver life-saving treatments without compromising on quality or accessibility.
Beyond this life-saving initiative, Al-Shifa Trust operates the largest network of tertiary eye care hospitals in Pakistan and aims to eliminate preventable blindness. Since 1991, Al-Shifa Trust has treated over 29 million patients. Monthly, over 80,000 underprivileged patients receive free eye care at Al-Shifa Trust. Join us in our mission to eliminate preventable blindness and support free eye care for the underprivileged.
— To learn more about Al-Shifa Trust, visit alshifaeye.org
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