The absent present despite the disease .. Army pupils save a young man from cancer

Najeh Zaghdoudi-Tunisia

His study seat in the Kasserine governorate is still empty. His companion traveled to another place at the Cancer Treatment Hospital in Tunis. His colleagues at the institute turned to a volunteer army to provide treatment expenses, pending his return to celebration.

Saber al-Abdali, a 17-year-old high school student from Fariana in Kasserine province, was expected to share the joy of school a month ago, but the malignant tumor deprived him of that joy.

Saber would not have been able to come to Tunis (340 kilometers from Feriana) for treatment without the support of the institute's friends and relatives who had collected financial aid to cover the costs of moving to the capital and providing a home close to the hospital for his family.

Surrounded by his mother, who lives with him in the same room, inspects the threads of medical devices connected to his right arm, and arranged his cover as if he was still a child who needs care; Saber was solid and believed in his ability to heal and defeat the disease, .

The plight of cancer
Saber discovered his cancer by accident. "When I felt pain and touched the swelling of my leg muscle," his mother brought a woman who massaged his leg, but primitive treatment did not work.

"I felt like glass debris scattering parts on the ground," the fifth mother said. Then she prayed and prayed for her son's recovery, and she has no trick to treat him.

Saber's concern for her son's cancer life is her loss of her brother three decades ago due to cancer, but what filled her heart with optimism is to reassure doctors that the tumor was detected early, and she is confident in the possibilities of treatment available despite the distance.

Saber absent present
Saber missed the body of his studies, but he did not miss the hearts of the people of his village.

Fariana, Bassem Saber, rushed to help the young and old, reacting to a blog post on social networks.

"We wanted to stand by him in his ordeal in terms of brotherly solidarity and humanitarian duty," says Bilkis Dolami, a student at the Saber Institute, referring to Saber's picture printed on the shirts of her classmates. She adds that their colleague is "present despite the absence".

`` We only had our daily expenses, but our spontaneous solidarity was stronger and faster than the intervention of the authorities, '' she said.``We are happy that we have been successful in helping our colleague, and proud that we have not let him down. ''

The campaign organizers left no door to help but knocked on. Saber's fundraising campaign overshadowed the election campaign, to the point where he put his pictures on candidates' posters and pictures, forcing candidates to interact with the campaign.

In one day, friends managed to raise 4.5 thousand dinars (more than $ 1,500) in donations, most of which were from pupils' pocket money, and a candidate for the elections alone donated about $ 2,000 (5,000 dinars), after which the family was able to travel for treatment.

Surrounded by campaign activists who frequented Sabir's father's house in the poor neighborhood of Feriana, carrying T-shirts on his image, Father Ismail dried up tears of anxiety about the health of his distant son, mixed with gratitude;

Emergency Army
The fundraising campaign was launched on the Facebook page created by Makram Tlili (a teacher at the institute) to gather around him young people and a lot of the people of Feriana, and expanded the fundraising department, and were able to save large sums.

The volunteers presented theatrical works and cultural demonstrations, giving their proceeds in favor of the costs of treating their colleague Saber.

October Pink
Like the central provinces of Kairouan, Kasserine, Siliana and Sidi Bouzid, there is no cancer treatment center in Kasserine (460,000 people), which deprives citizens of health services, especially in the border region of Feriana.

But Sabir's family and community solidarity and family support have contributed to the treatment.

The story of Saber in the fight against cancer with the help of his friends has become an inspiring civil success story, motivating teacher Makram to organize campaigns to help another girl with cancer (Malak);