Year in review: Most touching stories of 2019
Boy gains weight to save father's life
Lu Zikuan, an 11-year-old boy from Huixian county, Henan province, gained 15 kilograms in three months in order to donate bone marrow and save his father.
When he was 3 years old, the boy's father was diagnosed with myelodysplasia syndrome, or abnormal development of spinal cord, which is an early stage of leukemia. In 2018, the father's condition worsened. To save his life, a bone marrow transplant was needed. And for the transplant to be carried out, the donor had to weigh at least 45 kilograms.
By consuming five meals a day, the son ballooned from 30 kg to 45 kg since March, when his bone marrow was found to match that of his father.
On Sept 9, the operation went smoothly at a Peking University People's Hospital branch in Qinghe, Beijing. After being discharged from hospital, the boy started to lose weight and hoped to eventually get back to about 30 kg.
- Chinese vice-premier calls for strengthened flood control, drought relief work
- Former Chinese bank official stands trial for bribery
- China urges universities to add majors that meet social needs
- Ten photos from across China: April 12 - 18
- Number of foreign visits increases over threefold
- Shopping mall hosts 'space-out' competition in China