Athens, Greece. Syrian construction worker Abdulaziz Aldarwish sought lifesaving treatment for his son Yahia after the boy’s kidneys failed, eventually donating a kidney for a transplant in Greece. The family’s effort included a migrant boat journey from Lebanon to Cyprus amid a strained healthcare system.
Decision to leave Lebanon for medical care
Aldarwish said he could not afford the 1,200 euros per month needed for dialysis treatment for Yahia, and that the public healthcare system in Lebanon, where he worked, was in near-collapse after years of conflict and neglect. He raised 5,000 euros through savings and family loans to travel with his son by boat about 200 km (120 miles) to Cyprus, hoping to find doctors who could provide a kidney transplant.
His wife and their eight other children remained in a small Syrian village near the Lebanese border.
Transplant in Greece
In January, two years after leaving Lebanon, Yahia became one of the first young children to receive a transplant at the newly established Onassis National Transplant Center in Greece, which doctors described as an example of what can be achieved through international medical cooperation. Aldarwish was the donor.
After the operation, Aldarwish, 32, said: “I had to take a risk: either things work out, I get him treated… or that’s it, we both die.”
Yahia, now 10, said he wanted to rejoin his classmates in Cyprus and that he dreams of one day opening a supermarket.
Week adrift at sea
Aldarwish recalled the hardest moments during their journey as he pushed Yahia on a swing at a local playground in Athens. When they boarded the boat in Lebanon in 2024, they brought water and dates, expecting the trip to take only a few hours, and Yahia had received a round of peritoneal dialysis beforehand.
They ended up adrift in rough seas for a week, surviving on rainwater before being spotted by a merchant vessel.
What do you think should be done to improve access to critical medical treatment for families in similar situations?
