Marla is an adorable little girl from Mongolia who loves the colour pink, has a toddler’s boundless energy, and enjoys playing with her toys.
Marla’s life could have been much different. Like her mother, father, and maternal grandmother, she was born with congenital cataracts— a clouding of the eye’s natural lens that can render a child blind.
Marla’s doctor urged her parents to take her to the National Centre for Maternal and Child Health (NCMCH), an Orbis partner hospital in Ulaanbaatar, when Marla was just 19 days old.
At NCMCH, Dr. Shamsiya Murat examined her, confirmed the diagnosis — and knew she had to act quickly. If congenital cataracts aren’t treated in time, the child will have permanent vision loss.
Despite her family’s fears, Dr. Murat performed the surgery when this little girl was 42 days old — and Marla became the youngest person in Mongolia to receive cataract surgery.