The parents of this baby sold everything and did everything they could to save their beloved child’s life. But all their efforts were in vain.

A two-month-old baby born in Tbong Khmum, 167km northeast of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, unfortunately suffers from anencephaly, also known as “open skull syndrome,” a very rare congenital defect.

This condition causes parts of the brain, scalp, and skull of the fetus to not form normally. The defects occur in the third or fourth week of pregnancy. Due to brain abnormalities, these babies are often born blind, deaf, and only live for a few weeks. Each year, approximately 5,000 babies are born with this congenital defect, and there is no way to save them.

This baby’s name is Ah Neath. From the moment she was born, Srey (mother) and Heang (father) tried everything to get treatment, exhausting their finances. They even had to sell their house to pay for the tests. They always hoped their daughter would be saved. However, doctors in Cambodia were unable to treat her condition.

From the moment Ah Neath was born, her mother knew her daughter had a very serious illness. She cried for days and begged people to donate money to save Ah Neath.

A medical center in Southeast Asia, between Thailand and Vietnam, believes that the missing part of her skull may be due to a missing part of her brain. Her limbs function well, but her head is concave, resembling a “volcano crater,” and there is a large swelling at the back.

Ah Neath was hospitalized for two months and required oxygen support. Although she has been discharged and returned home, her health remains very fragile.

Ah Neath’s mother, Srey, and father, Heang, have already sold their home to pay for her treatment but need more cash to take her to capital city Phnom Penh where her condition can be dealt with better.

Srey said: ‘I knew there was something very wrong with my baby when she was born. I have cried for days and asked people to donate money.

‘We are poor and have sold our home and land to try to save my daughter. She is healthy, but her head does not have all of the skull.

‘We are facing hardship and struggling to raise her to survive on the planet. Our only hope is that doctors may be able to help, or a foreign doctor may help.’

Ah Neath has use of all of limbs despite her disease.

She has been discharged and is staying with family in the Ponhea Kraek District.