In FREETOWN, Sierra Leone, November 3, 2025 – when 10-month-old baby Memunatu was carried into the Global Mercy™, the world’s largest civilian hospital ship, her mother, Aminata, held not only a child but a prayer. A large tumor had formed on the infant’s neck, making it nearly impossible for her to swallow, eat, or even cry. In months, Aminata had searched desperately for help for her child and found none. Until one encounter changed everything.
That encounter came through Dr. Leo Cheng, a British maxillofacial surgeon who has volunteered with Mercy Ships for over 20 years. Mercy Ships is a global humanitarian organization that delivers free, life-changing surgical care and medical training to people in developing nations, with a strong focus on Africa. Operating fully equipped hospital ships such as the Global Mercy and Africa Mercy, the charity partners with governments to strengthen local healthcare systems through education, professional training, and infrastructure development.
Since its founding in 1978, Mercy Ships has performed more than 122,000 surgical procedures and trained thousands of healthcare workers, addressing conditions such as cleft lips, cataracts, and orthopedic deformities. Beyond surgeries, its volunteer professionals also provide dental care and other essential medical services, all at no cost to patients.
Driven by its mission to bring hope and healing to those without access to safe, affordable surgery, Mercy Ships continues to transform lives while empowering nations to build sustainable healthcare capacity for the future.
After examining Memunatu’s scans, Dr. Cheng knew the tumor was not cancerous but was deadly all the same. “Without surgery, her condition would have continued to worsen. It could have become life-threatening” – Dr. Cheng said.
A human story dimension behind a global health crisis: Memunatu’s case represents more than one child’s struggle. It is a reflection of a wider and often invisible crisis, where there is the lack of access to surgical care in low-income nations. The Lancet Commission on Global Surgery estimates that five billion people worldwide cannot obtain safe, timely and affordable surgery. In sub-Saharan Africa, where resources are scarce by governance inappropriateness, this often means that treatable conditions, from hernias to cleft lips and to tumors, become lifelong burdens or even death sentences.
In communities where medical myths persist, untreated deformities also carry cultural and social costs. As noted in some cases – “families face rejection, even accusations of witchcraft or curses. When healing happens, it’s not just physical – it restores dignity, family bonds, and belonging”- explained by Anne-Marie van Tonder, a volunteer nurse from South Africa who first connected Aminata to the on sea hospital ship.
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