Last week, we had 6 babies born in one day! The Lord answered prayer for safe deliveries, and all the women made it to the hospital before delivering too. Four of them are from the same mother, quadruplets mentioned in the previous update. All four quads are in the NICU. The two boys were having respiratory issues (one has pneumonia) and also required a blood transfusion. Both are improving slowly. Pray that they would begin to breathe well on their own and gain weight to go home to their family.

The two quad girls are healthier than the boys, but are underweight due to their premature birth by c-section. They are only staying in the NICU until they’ve gained a sufficient amount of weight to go home. They might go home today but we aren’t certain! Their mother is at home recovering from the c-section and is able to visit them in the hospital. We visited the family’s home. It is a small room on the roof of a building, and it is not well suited for 4 premature babies. We hope to visit the family again soon after the girls are discharged, bringing gifts of warm clothes and a heater for the winter. We also need to further asses what other needs could be met to help all four babies survive the winter.

The other two babies born last week are doing quite well. They were born healthy and are now home with their grateful families!

New Medical Cases To Pray For

Almost a month ago, a middle-aged father came to the outreach meeting complaining of pain in his legs. He has extremely large veins on both legs. They are the largest veins we’ve ever seen, and the largest some doctors have seen that we’ve shown pictures to. We are concerned he may have Deep Vein Thrombosis which if left untreated could lead to a blood clot traveling to the lungs. We were able to take him to a specialist this week to have some tests run, and we will know more soon about this man’s condition.

Specific Ongoing Cases To Pray For

We found out that the doctor of the young girl with thalassemia recommends she begin receiving her biweekly blood transfusion through a special port. This port has to be implanted surgically every time she needs a transfusion and is very costly. Pray that the doctor would be able to find an alternative to this port, as this young girl needs a transfusion every two weeks or she could easily die. We have to pray the Lord would continue to provide for that even as it becomes far more costly with this new procedure. We are also hoping she will eventually be relocated to a country where she is able to receive a bone marrow transplant. Being chronically transfused eventually leads to needing special red cell units due to growing incompatibility issues with the donors. These blood transfusions are a temporary solution to a long term problem. Pray she is able to be relocated with her family by the UN or another organization to receive the bone marrow transplant she needs.

The man with a large tumor on his jaw continues to come to our weekly meetings where we are able to change his bandage. He had to have his stitches removed and replaced due to the rapid growth of the tumor. Pray that we would have the funds for the surgical removal of his tumor. He must have his tumor removed soon before it destroys his jaw completely or possibly spreads to another part of his body. His biopsy test result was inconclusive to confirm the tumor is cancerous. It may be which is another reason he needs the surgery sooner rather than later.

The local Muslim woman with cancer continues to receive cancer treatment. Her doctors decided it is best for her to not continue intravenous chemotherapy. She is now only taking treatment in pill form. We do not know how much longer she has to live. Her reduced chemo treatment may lead to a faster decline. This woman’s mother also recently died of cancer. Pray for her as she grieves the loss of her mother who lost the battle to the same disease that may soon take her.

Thanks For Praying!

As always, thank you for taking the time to read these updates and pray or support as you are able to!

Thank you again for your prayers and support. This is a work bigger than any of us, but not bigger then God or His church! If you wish to be involved in any way, you can support TGI via our site, sign up for our relief updates e-mail newsletter to better know how to pray, or contact us if you are interested in knowing more about how to be personally involved.