Amidst ongoing controversy regarding India’s stance on taking part in Asia Cup 2023 in Pakistan, there is news that has come as a pleasant surprise to both. Despite political differences, the two countries, India and Pakistan continue to add glittering chapters to their long history.
The cheerful news is about Sikandar Bakht, a former Pakistan cricketer’s daughter having been cured of a life-threatening disease. Amyra, who was operated on for Mucopolysaccharidosis type I (MPS-I) four months ago has been found to be doing well. The Doctors revealed the news while sharing the case study on Wednesday, October 19th 2022.
“It came as a shock to us that our daughter was diagnosed with MPS-1. We were not aware of this condition. It took immense research to be able to understand it and find suitable healthcare professionals,” said Sadaf Khan, wife of Sikander Bakht after finding her daughter to be cured of the disease.
In this rare condition, a crucial enzyme is missing in the body of the patient. Due to the absence of the enzyme, the person develops “a lot of changes in the body, the liver and spleen becomes big, bones change”, Dr Sunil Bhat who treated the child said. The procedure of Bone marrow transplant was done by doctors at Narayana Hospital in Bangalore.
“Mucopolysaccharidosis is a rare condition that has the potential to impact the functioning of multiple organs including eyes and brain,” Narayana Health’s Chairman and Founder Devi Shetty was quoted as saying on Wednesday.
It was the father of the little girl, Bakht who became the donor of bone marrow and helped save her life. Talking of the selection process, Dr Bhat said, “The girl did not have any siblings and we looked for an unrelated donor but that was also not available. That’s why we chose to use one of the parents as donor, which is known as a half-matched donor transplant.”
Sikander Bakht played 26 Tests and 27 ODI matches for the Pakistan national team and took a total of 100 wickets in his international career. Bakht now works as a commentator and analyst.
