Update

I talked with Dr. Iftekhar 2 days ago on phone. To my surprise, the line went through on the first try.
Dr.Iftekhar told me that Asma is still being treated by the Doctors in Sylhet and she is responding well to chemotherapy.
I asked him why she is not being moved to Dhaka. Apparently, Asma's parents are locals of Sylhet and not too eager to move her to Dhaka for fear of expense.
Dr. Iftekhar told me he will inform her parents of our campaign and try to persuade them to move her to Dhaka.

Video clip of Asma - the girl with leukemia from Bangladesh

I got this from Mrinal yesterday. Asma is still in Sylhet and waiting for a referral from her doctors so that she can continue her treatment in Dhaka. It is frustrating things move so slowly in Bangladesh. I have tried several times to contact Dr. Iftekhar by phone but because of bad network I could not get through even once. I am communicating with him through Mrinal by emails as Dr. Iftekhar does not come online.

Latest update on Asma's condition

I got a mail from Mrinal yesterday. He informs me that Asma has been admitted to Sylhet Osmani Hospital again because of a problem she is having as a result of her current medication. This is not serious but Dr. Iftekhar asked us to arrange to move her to Dhaka for better treatment and Mrinal is arranging that with the help of others.

My heartfelt thanks to all of you who have responded to the plight of this child and made donations. I have not met Asma's family but I am sure they would also like to thank you for your kind support.
So far we have collected a total of $440 from a few generous individuals.
I would like to ask all of you to spread the word to your friends by email or in any other means and donate whatever you can and not wait for later.
Mrinal is currently waging a fundraising campaign in Sylhet and he has collected Tk. 30000 so far. Our goal is Tk. 2 Lakhs to meet her expenses in Dhaka and as you can see-- we have not reached that goal yet.
We also want to remain financially prepared in case she needs to be moved to India or another country.
Dr. Iftekhar promised me he will follow up with St. Jude Children's Hospital of Tennesse on their offer to consult for free and offer treatment options.
I will inform you all about this when I have heard back from him.

Greetings and stay safe wherever you are.

Update on Asma's condition and Reply from St. Jude Children's Hospital

I had a brief phone conversation with Dr. Iftekhar today.
He informed me that he checked Asma today and her condition is stable now.
He also told me that if she could be transferred to Dhaka, she could get better treatment.

Meanwhile I also got an email reply from the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital authorities regarding Asma.
Basically, they told me that they must have an ongoing protocol (treatment program) to be able to treat a patient and that they do not have an open protocol at this time.

However, they offered to consult with Asma's treating physician(s) at no charge and offer recommendations and other treatment options.

I have informed Dr. Iftekhar about this and he will get in touch with St. Jude soon.
I will post an update when I hear back from him.

Update

Faxed over Asma's papers two days ago to St.Judes Children's Hospital in Memphis, Tennesse for consideration in a clinical trial program.

Save Asma from cancer

Asma is 5 year old girl in Sylhet, Bangladesh. She was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia on 18th January, 2007 by doctors at Osmani Medical College Hospital in Sylhet.
Her doctors advised her parents to take her abroad for Bone marrow transplantation since it is not done in Bangladesh. But unfortunately her parents cannot even afford to take her to Dhaka for more accurate diagnosis, let alone take her abroad.
Asma's father Angur Mia sells tea on the roadside for living and makes very little money.
Because of lack of funds, she is currently getting chemotheraphy at the hospital and does not stand a chance to live much longer without Bone Marrow transplantation.

I came to know about Asma from Bangladeshi bloggers and contacted one of the stduents at ShahJalal University of Science and Technology - Mrinal Sarker - who is trying to help raise fund for her treatment.
Through Mrinal, I made phone contact with Asma's physician Dr. Iftekhar-Ul-Haque Khan and came to know about Asma's current condition. You can see the copies of Asma's diagnosis and reports from the links which Dr. Iftekhar provided.

Asma needs to be moved to Dhaka for better treatment and sent to a hospital abroad from there.
The nearest country that has hospitals that can do bone marrow transplant is in India. The cost of bone marrow transplantation in India is expected to run around $20000 and treatment expenses in Dhaka is expected to run about $3000. These are approximate figures and actual cost will depend on where she will get her Bone marrow transplant treatment. With this in mind, we are asking you to Donate generously.
The other possibility is if any hospital or organazition in the US or another country is kind enough to provide Asma's treatment free - that would be the best solution.
If you have any ideas about this please let us know. I am in the process of contacting some research hospitals to see if they can help.

You can contact Asma's physician Dr. Iftekhar directly if you want to know about her condition but I found phone communication to Bangladesh is not good at the moment, at least not to Sylhet.
In any case, I and Mrinal will post updates on Asma's condition in this blog from time to time.

Please donate money generously for her treatment using the link on the side bar
The donated money will be used towards Asma's treatment in consultation with her physician and her parents. I will update on status of collected money in this blog regularly.

You can also send money to Asma's father's bank account directly if you wish:
Account Holder name: Angur Mia
Account number: 4112038171300
BIC Code: ABBLBDDH112
Institution name: ARAB BANGLADESH BANK LIMITED
Branch name: (MADHUBAN SUPER MARKET BRANCH)
Sylhet
Bangladesh

Please remember Asma's condition is not good and she needs Bone marrow transplantation as soon as possible.
Her future depends on your generosity and kindness.