MELAKA: Nine-month-old baby girl, Ainul Mardhiah Ahmad Safiuddin, suffering from Germ Cell Tumour - a rare type of cancer - is expected to leave for London, United Kingdom, on Friday to seek treatment.
Her father, Ahmad Safiuddin Ahmad Razak, 24, said all the necessary preparations had been made and the family was only waiting for the tickets from Malaysia Airlines (MAS).
"The airline has confirmed it is ready to take us there. All that is left is just the procedure to get the tickets," he said when met at his home in Taman Ayer Molek here today.
Accompanying them, he said, will be two experts in anesthetic management from a local private hospital, who will be going there at their own expense.
He said that UK-trained surgeon, Dr Nur Amalina Che Bakri, had also confirmed that another doctor will be waiting for them at Heathrow Airport upon their arrival.
As to which hospital Ainul Mardhiah will be going to, he said Dr Amalina had made the arrangement but had yet to inform them.
"We are really thankful to all the generous people who donated money for this cause and allowed us to make this journey."
Ahmad Saifuddin said despite knowing the risk in taking Ainul Mardhiah to London, he and his family remained hopeful and positive.
"I am told that taking a flight can be risky for Ainul but we pray that everything will go smoothly. I hope Malaysians will also pray for her safe journey.
"I also know that the chance of recovery is slim and the surgery can be risky. But we feel that we need to do this. Doctors in UK said they will need to do an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) on Ainul before proceeding further." he said.
Meanwhile, Ainul Mardhiah's mother, Nurul Erwani Zaidi, 24, said her daughter's tumour has grown larger depite having gone through chemotherapy since she was three-months-old.
"As a mother, I really want to see her active again. She used to be able to move her body but not any more," she said.