Boy with rare ailment on road to recovery.

(From Philippine Daily Inquirer)

Byline: Cathy S. Babao-Guballa

IT TAKES a village to raise a child, and it has taken an entire hospital to heal this one.

Kenneth Villa, the 8-year-old boy afflicted with Morquio Syndrome who was abandoned by his parents, left in the care of his grandmother and maiden aunts, and hooked to a ventilator for four years, is finally on the road to recovery.

Tuesday last week, Kenneth was discharged from the Philippine General Hospital where, two months ago, he had undergone a delicate surgical procedure for a rare congenital disorder.

Dr. Willy Lopez, chair of the PGH Department of Neurosciences, said the boy was "looking good, although complete healing is expected six months after his operation."

The debilitating affliction is described as a mucopolysaccharide disorder. It severely affects the spine and lungs. When the Inquirer first published his story in October last year, Kenneth …