Abdou

Niger
Limb Deformity

“His father wants nothing to do with him because of his condition,” Abdou’s mother tells us, her voice heavy with sadness. “(Abdou’s father) will not give money for food or for clothes or to help Abdou in any way.”

Since Abdou was five years old, his legs have splayed out due to a severe leg deformity. He struggles to walk even with the assistance of a sturdy tree branch he has fashioned into a cane. Besides the discrimination Abdou faces in his own family, he has also been beaten by several men in his village and many parents forbid their children from playing with him for fear that they will be infected with his disability. This is heart wrenching for a gentle and loving young man such as Abdou.

Thankfully, Abdou’s uncle struck up a chance friendship with one of our CURE Niger employees who passed our message of hope on to him. Abdou and his mother made the journey to the hospital where he received the healing he needed to stand tall and straight! After ten months of treatment including two long operations, the bandages were off and Abdou’s wounds were healed. Abdou can now stand proud, his mother even asked for a copy of Abdou’s very first before photo because people who meet him now don’t believe the stories of how bent his legs used to be!