Wuhan heart doctors heal far and wide

Five-year-old Le Le and 18-month-old Meng Meng from the impoverished Jingyuan county, Guyuan, Northwest China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region, also benefitted from the hospital's program.

In April of this year, the younger sister Meng Meng was diagnosed with congenital heart disease in a medical examination organized by the hospital, after her elder sister Le Le received a similar diagnosis in a kindergarten physical check-up not long ago.

A congenital heart surgery usually costs around 25,000 ($3,638) to 40,000 yuan ($5,821), which placed a tremendous amount of pressure on the family with six daughters, one working parent and over 60,000 yuan of debt.

After learning about the family's financial difficulties, the expert team helped the girls apply for a special fund, which covers more than 80,000 yuan of the total medical expenses.

In mid May, the two sisters went to Wuhan with more than a dozen children with congenital heart diseases in Ningxia Hui autonomous region. Tao and Wang Xiao, deputy head of cardiothoracic surgery department, performed the surgery on the girls with success.