My name is Eugene Britko. I am a Christian, a political refugee and a father of 5 children. My daughter — her name is Cassia — has been visually impaired since birth. She has been diagnosed with a mutation in the PAX6 gene, which causes the irises of her eyes to be almost completely missing.
This rare condition is called aniridia. It leads to multiple complications: photophobia, involuntary eye movement, retinal degeneration and optic atrophy.
The good news is that with proper and timely treatment, you can keep all of these diseases under control and keep your vision at an acceptable level for a long time. But if something is neglected, the degradation of vision happens very quickly.
Two and a half years ago my family and I had to leave Belarus. We delayed this moment until the last moment, because we realized that it would be very difficult to deal with our daughter's diagnosis in a new country. How to explain the nuances of her disease to doctors in a foreign language? How to find affordable treatment? And the main thing — how to help her adapt in the new world, which even we, adults, do not fully understand ourselves?
However, the Belarusan regime left us no choice. At the end of 2020, the workers of the social welfare service started to come to us. Formally, they were interested in the situation in our large family. They asked questions about income, inspected the house, pretended to care. But it was clear to everyone — to us and to them — why they were here. They were gathering materials to remove the children. We have heard such stories many times: parents are sent to a colony and children to orphanages.
The thing is that none of us stayed away during the protests. We went to marches, participated in yard activities, and on my garage door were written the words “LIVE BELARUS” and the names of all the people killed during the protests.
One evening I was standing outside the garage where that inscription was, and I caught myself thinking that our names — mine, my wife's, and our children's — might appear there as well. The thought struck me like a blow, and in that moment I realized that to stay would be to doom everyone. I had to protect my family at all costs. So we began to prepare our departure.
The first thing I did was to make visas to Lithuania and solve the legalization issues. Then I learned all about Cassia's treatment in the new country. After that, my wife and I thought about our income options. We waited until our eldest son finished college in Belarus and then, in August 2022, we left.
Everything was going well, but a few months ago Cassia's intraocular pressure started to rise for some unknown reason. We were frightened because if this process was not stopped, the blood vessels would be squeezed. And this would lead to irreversible damage to the optic nerve and complete loss of vision.
Here, in Vilnius, we have turned to the best specialists — both paid and free — we have visited all possible clinics and hospitals. But, unfortunately, at the moment we have not been able to solve the problem. Cassia's intraocular pressure remains high and her vision continues to deteriorate.
We found a clinic in Israel (Sheba Medical Center), whose doctors looked at Kassia's documents and invited her for examination and surgery. Now this is our main chance to save our daughter's eyesight. Unfortunately, we can't afford this trip financially. I am appealing to you for help to give our daughter a chance for a bright future.
Cassia is not just a girl with a diagnosis. She is a real ray of sunshine in our family. And despite her vision problems, she loves bright colors. Her favorite color is yellow. One day when she was three years old, she said: “Yellow is the color of happiness. I always see it.” Her fortitude helps keep us going even when we seem to be at a dead end.
*BYSOL has all supporting medical documentation on file
How much is needed?
€11000
€1500 — travel from Vilnius to Israel and back for 2 people (Cassia and my wife).
€1500 — accommodation for 10 days during the examination and surgery.
€1700 — comprehensive examination of Kassia, including tests and consultations with specialized specialists, as well as preparation for the surgery.
€5000 — surgery on both eyes, including the installation of drainage systems to reduce intraocular pressure.
€1300 — post-operative care and supervision.