In a shocking incident, the nine-year-old girl from Alappuzha, who allegedly tested HIV positive after undergoing a blood transfusion at the Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) in Thiruvananthapuram died at 11.30 am on Wednesday.
The girl suffered from a chest congestion for last two-to-three days and had sought treatment at the Medical College Hospital at Vandanam, Alappuzha district.
The girl was diagnosed with leukaemia in March 2017 and was admitted to the RCC. In August, the parents were asked to take the child for a blood test at the Medical College Hospital, situated near RCC in Thiruvananthapuram. The result showed that the girl was HIV positive, much to the shock of the parents who tested negative for the same. The child’s mother had approached the High Court in September, seeking a probe into the issue.
“After being discharged from the RCC, she was undergoing Ayurvedic treatment. She had this uneasiness for the past two-to-three days, so we sought treatment at the Medical College Hospital. On Wednesday morning, we took her to the Medical College Hospital again. After reaching home, the condition worsened and she was immediately taken to the hospital, but we couldn’t save her,” the girl’s father told TNM.
The petition filed in the court sought for an enquiry by the Secretary of Ministry of Health and Family Welfare as well as the Chief Secretary of the state. However, in a test conducted in October last year at a Chennai lab, she tested negative for HIV. In November, doctors confirmed that the girl was cured of leukaemia.
“The RCC doctors gave me the Chennai lab result only days ago. The HIV test conducted at the Government Medical College Hospital and after that a private lab outside. Both the results said that it was HIV positive. I don’t know exactly what is happening. There is no clear answer to whatever we ask. This has been the case from when her treatment began at RCC. That is what should be exposed. We haven’t been given any explanation on what had happened or what is happening now,” the girl’s father had told TNM.