Girl with cerebral palsy needs surgery

Maria Bianca Francesca Flores

When four-year-old Maria Bianca Francesca Flores’ mother stopped coming home to attend to her, the girl’s grandmother took over without hesitation.

“How can I not take care of her when she is my first ‘apo’? I love her and I have come to accept her condition. I am looking for ways to make sure that she will be OK,” said Lani Macasinag, 54.

According to her, her four-year-old granddaughter suffers from mild cerebral palsy, has a hole in her heart and experiences periodic seizure. She is also unable to walk and talk.

Maria Bianca is scheduled to undergo a heart operation at the Philippine Heart Center. For this, Lani said they need to raise P106,000. The rest of the amount (P100,000) will be shouldered by the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office.

But before Maria Bianca can have surgery, she needs to have all her bad teeth removed to reduce the risk of bleeding and an infection.

The procedure to be done at the Philippine Children’s Medical Center will cost Lani and her husband, who works as a driver for a hostel, P42,000.

Lani can be reached at 0999-5563314. Donations for Maria Bianca’s dental procedure and heart surgery can be deposited in Lani Macasinag’s BPI account (# 8709076966).