After months of trying to persuade the U.S. government, officials finally approved the entry of a Vietnamese stem cell donor who could potentially save the life of a dying mother from cancer in Orange County, California.
Thuy Nguyen, Helen Huynh’s sister and the only person who is a 100% donor match, has been granted humanitarian parole entry to the U.S. that will last for 180 days.
Nguyen, 61, was first diagnosed with a very aggressive form of leukemia on Feb. 14, 2017, and the best way to save her is through stem-cell therapy. See this great post to read to learn more about stem-cell threapy.
“This is an incredible moment–to know that Helen’s sister Thuy Nguyen will soon be here in America, and even more important that Helen will soon be getting the stem cell treatment that she so desperately needs,” Congressman Alan Lowenthal said in a statement on Wednesday (Sept. 27, 2017).
Nguyen’s case made headlines weeks before the announcement when Thuy was barred by the U.S. government from entering the country despite the help of three other hospitals. She was also willing to leave everything behind in Vietnam, including her 5-year-old child.
“I want to thank U.S. Ambassador to Vietnam Ted Osius and the State Department for their efforts to respond to our concerns and to the urgency of this humanitarian crisis. I also want to thank Ambassador Osius and his staff for their commitment to work with us to get Thuy to Helen as quickly as possible,” Congressman Lowenthal added.
“I also want to express my deep gratitude to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service for expediting the humanitarian parole process for Thuy and for granting the approval. They understood from the beginning the dire humanitarian need in this case, and they followed through with quick action,” the Representative for California’s 47th Congressional District continued in his statement.
“Perhaps most importantly, I want to thank the Huynh family, whose faith and determination in a positive outcome never wavered.”
“Now that we know Helen, with the help of Thuy, will receive the treatment she needs, we should all take a moment and offer our best thoughts and prayers for Helen,” the congressman said.
Lowenthal concluded his statement by thanking several colleagues, including: “Congresswomen Barbara Lee (CA-13) and Zoe Lofgren (CA-19), Congressmen Lou Correa (CA-46), Eliot Engel (NY-16), Ro Khanna (CA-17), and Ted Lieu (CA-33), and California Senator Kamala Harris.”
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