1 year old boy with rare fatal illness needs immediate liver transplant

IN NEED OF LIVER TRANSPLANT Dave Matthew Lopez and mother Marissa Evalora visit Radyo Inquirer and Inquirer.net offices at Media Resource Plaza building on Tuesday afternoon. Photo by Totel de Jesus/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Dave Matthew Lopez, the new-born baby boy afflicted with a rare liver ailment called biliary cirrhosis and whose story appeared on December 12, 2011 at the Philippine Daily Inquirer, is in need of immediate surgery amounting P3 million to P4 million.

According to Dave Matthew’s mother, 39-year-old housekeeper Marissa Evalora, the delicate operation can only be performed in Chang-Gung Memorial Hospital in Taipei as recommended by Dr. Hermana Gregorio, head of gastro-interology department of the Philippine General Hospital.

Nearly two months after the Inquirer story came out, the family is still short of funds for the liver transplant.

Marissa’s common-law husband and Dave Matthew’s father, Melecio Lopez, is a mechanic in Dubai and though he earns P20,000 a month, the money he sends back to them can barely sustain Dave Matthew’s maintenance medicine and the family’s daily needs.

Marissa used to be a sales agent for a real-estate company but she needed to stop to focus on taking care of Dave Matthew. They are renting a portion of a four-story house in Pinagsama Village, Taguig City.

Dave Matthew is being treated as an out-patient of PGH.

Doctors at the PGH told Marissa that if the operation won’t be performed immediately, the baby will have only two years to live.

Now one year and three months old, Dave Matthew has lost weight.

“We need help immediately. I pray for people out there with a good heart will support us to save my baby,” she told INQUIRER.net

Marissa can be reached at 0918-4849446. Her bank account number with Banco de Oro is 6020092924.