In late February, a strong scent of traditional herbal medicine permeated the four-level house in Nguyen Uy ward, Ninh Binh province. A prolonged coughing fit doubled 48-year-old Nguyen Luong Loi over, bringing him close to the tiled floor. Rubbing his chest, he walked to the well to rinse rice, preparing lunch for his 74-year-old mother. Just a few minutes of activity exhausted the man with late-stage cancer.

The house, once bustling with the laughter of a family of six, is now quiet. His wife, Nguyen Thi Huong, is at K Hospital, Tan Trieu facility, in Hanoi, caring for their youngest daughter, 9-year-old An Luong, who is undergoing chemotherapy for rhabdomyosarcoma.

Nguyen Luong Loi, who has hypopharyngeal cancer and pulmonary tuberculosis, with his 9-year-old daughter An Luong, who has soft tissue cancer, at their home in Nguyen Uy ward, Ninh Binh province, early 2/2026. *Photo: Family provided*

Tragedy struck the family in 11/2024. Coughing up blood led Loi to the hospital. Doctors diagnosed him with both pulmonary tuberculosis and hypopharyngeal cancer. The tumor grew rapidly, compressing his esophagus and requiring a combined chemotherapy and radiation therapy regimen. The family had no money, and Loi lacked health insurance. Medical costs overwhelmed his wife, a factory worker earning 5 million VND per month.

Facing a life-or-death situation, the 48-year-old man refused a transfer to Hanoi. He only admitted himself to a provincial hospital for a few days to receive fluids to combat exhaustion when the pain became unbearable.

In early 4/2025, their youngest daughter, An Luong, suddenly experienced severe abdominal pain and bleeding. After quickly borrowing two million VND, her parents took her to the hospital. Following surgery to remove a cervical polyp, the girl's weight loss and fever symptoms persisted. The final diagnosis at the National Children's Hospital was a second death sentence for the family: malignant soft tissue cancer (rhabdomyosarcoma). The disease metastasizes quickly, requiring a multi-modal treatment regimen for at least one year.

Within just six months, both father and daughter were diagnosed with cancer. Over the phone, Huong cried, asking her husband about their dire financial situation. "Just admit our daughter to the hospital; I will figure out the money myself," Loi replied.

The father's "figuring out" meant completely abandoning his own medication. High-dose painkillers became his only solace. At night, the tumor's compression caused him to vomit and stay awake. He saved money by reducing his own prescriptions, using it instead for his daughter's chemotherapy.

Aware of her husband's silent suffering, Huong tearfully pleaded with him. But on the other end of the line, his voice was firm: "Our daughter's life must be saved first."

Valuable assets in their home were sold off one by one. Their debt surpassed 100 million VND. In Hanoi, for every 10-day chemotherapy cycle, Huong had to pay an additional two million VND for off-list medications, not including living expenses. Their two older daughters, who are factory workers with young children, tried to scrimp and send some financial support. All burdens fell upon the wife in Hanoi and the critically ill husband struggling in their hometown.

Nguyen Thi Huong with her daughter An Luong during treatment at K Hospital, Tan Trieu facility, Hanoi, mid-2025. *Photo: Family provided*

During the recent Lunar New Year of Binh Ngo, the family had a brief reunion between chemotherapy cycles. Without traditional banh chung cakes or peach blossoms, Loi butchered a free-range chicken to treat his wife and daughters. The year-end feast was served amidst the father's coughs interspersed with the daughter's vomiting due to chemotherapy side effects.

As 2026 began, An Luong's fight for life entered a critical phase. Doctors required enhanced nutrition to build her physical foundation for targeted radiation therapy. In his hometown, Loi planned that once his health improved, he would take on rattan weaving work, earning an additional tens of thousands of VND daily.

When asked about the tumor growing on his neck, the father remained resolute: "Only when my daughter's treatment regimen is complete will I consider a path to survival for myself."

To inspire hope in pediatric patients facing difficult circumstances, the Hope Foundation, in collaboration with Ong Mat Troi, is implementing the Mat Troi Hy Vong program. Every contribution from the community brings a ray of light to the nation's future generation. Readers can support the program here:

Program name: Ten cua ban - Mat troi Hy vong

Program ID: 195961

Quynh Nguyen