Boy with brain tumor needs to undergo MRI

Melchor Noriega Jr.

MANILA, Philippines — Melchor Noriega Jr. was only 4 years old in 2018 when a CT scan done at a hospital in Ilagan, Isabela province, showed a brain tumor.

“He suddenly felt nauseated, his head ached and he suffered from poor vision. He experienced all three one after the other so we brought him to the hospital,” Melchor Noriega Sr., Noriega Jr.’s father, told the Inquirer.

Although the hospital had a neurosurgeon, it was not equipped with a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine which was needed to diagnose the boy’s real condition.

Noriega Sr. said that following the advice of doctors, he brought his son and wife Jessica to Manila, leaving their teenage daughter under the care of his parents.

The family has since been staying at Child House, a shelter in Quezon City which is near Philippine Children’s Medical Center where Noriega Jr. is being treated.

“We were told that my son should undergo an MRI every three months. We had our first in November. The second one was scheduled for February but it was delayed and then put on hold because of the Luzon lockdown that started on March 17,” Noriega Sr. said.

The family is now trying to raise funds for the MRI for Noriega Jr., who is paralyzed on the left side of his body. The 6-year-old boy will need P13,200 for the test on top of the P3,360 he needs for his monthly medication. He is taking DDAVP (Minirin) which costs P112 once a day.

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Melchor Noriega Sr. can be reached at 0965-1767073. Donations can be deposited in his BPI account (#3069-0857-88).