A learner (14) from Maganise Primary School in Mthatha received an early Christmas present of a prosthetic leg from the officials of Marissa Nel & Associate Medical Orthotists Prosthetists.
Fihliwe Ngquthwana suffered from osteogenic sarcoma (also called osteosarcoma) – a cancer that starts in the bone – and as a result her leg was amputated.
Fihliwe cut her foot on a broken bottle on a gravel road in her community in 2016. She said the cut just could not heal and her leg began to swell.
According to her father, Siwaphiwe Ngcwangu, she was taken to a hospital for testing and the results were devastating.
“The doctor informed the family that the only way to save her life was to amputate the leg. Fihliwe is a fortunate cancer survivor and with the assistance of crutches moves around and is able to attend school,” said Ngquthwana.
“I don’t know what to say to the principal of this school because if she did not stand up and look for help for my daughter, surely she would have been using crutches even now,” said Ngcwangu.
The principal of Maganise Primary School, Tobeka Vapi, approached Mthatha practice manager for Marissa Nel & Associates, Fatima Mathe, who recently opened a branch in Mthatha, to see what assistance she could source for this girl.
Mathe said Marissa Nel & Associates had a large number of compression stockings, which are designed to help prevent venous disorders, such as oedema, phlebitis and thrombosis, which they donate to anyone who needs them, and in return they ask for a small donation towards their Rocking the Stocking fund-raising campaign, set up to exclusively raise funds towards selected recipients.
“We would make sure that we assist Fihliwe because now she is like our child. We also appeal to other people who have the same problems to come forward because we are here to give help.
“We are happy that we managed to fulfil her dream of playing on the jumping castle because now she has a leg,” said Mathe.
