Glimmer of hope for man who lost six children

After calamity comes a glimmer of hope.
A retired military officer who was told by a hospital in the US that there may finally be a cure for a mysterious disease that killed six of his children at infancy is pleading with authorities to sponsor treatment for his remaining children.
Saeed Al-Shahrani, from Khamis Mushayt, had received the news after returning from the US on a state-sponsored trip to treat his nine-month-old daughter, Rawdah, who also died despite efforts to treat her at a hospital in Washington D.C.
The man and his daughter had been sent abroad by National Guard Minister Prince Miteb bin Abdullah and had also been given emergency financial aid.
Coming back home depressed and bereaved following the loss of his daughter, Al-Shahrani received a letter from the hospital saying that their laboratories have finally uncovered the genetic mutations that cause the disease and that treatment can be sought.
Al-Shahrani has submitted a plea with the names of his remaining children, saying he needs the support of the Kingdom’s Royal Court since he cannot afford travel and treatment expenses. He has run up a huge debt trying to treat his children.
“We badly need the Royal Court to issue directives to transfer the rest of the family for treatment in the US,” he said.
“The medical report also indicated that my wife and I can have newborn healthy children,” he added.
“Before my daughter Rawdah died, I had appealed to authorities and my request was accepted.”
“My wife recently had twins,” he told Arab News. “One has already fallen ill. I am a retiree and my financial situation is tight.”
“Symptoms start with brain atrophy and acidity in the blood. My kids would eventually lose their eyesight and balance. My children used to suffer from lethargy, dizziness, difficulty breathing and forgetfulness from as early as six months of age,” he said. “The symptoms would continue to get worse until they died.”
“My first child was inflicted with the disease 15 years ago,” he said. “My other four children later met the same fate.”
“I had visited a specialist hospital, military hospital and other major hospitals in the Kingdom, including the King Faisal Specialist Hospital, but no one was able to diagnose the case,” he told local media.
“I went into debt after borrowing money to travel to Egypt, Oman, the United Arab Emirates and other countries in search of a cure for my children, but I failed and resorted to posting a video on YouTube, which garnered a huge response, the most important of which was the call I received from the National Guard office,” Al-Shahrani said.