“Every person I can help makes my own experience a little less painful.”
Ammar Mohammad Abu-Adel started smoking as a young man in Syria, and when he developed a bad cough, he thought nothing of it. But when he lost his appetite, and 10 kilos, he went to a clinic and was diagnosed with tuberculosis. He feared the worst, having known a neighbor who died from the disease. He was careful to adhere to treatment, and it took two years to cure him. Survival turned him into an advocate. He now works as a volunteer for the International Organization of Migration in Za’atari Refugee camp in Jordan, where people are vulnerable to TB, living in a densely-populated camp. He guides people others to TB treatment, and helps explain the seriousness of the disease. “Every person I can help makes my own experience a little less painful,” Ammar said.
Ammar regularly visits TB patients in their homes in Za’atari refugee camp, Jordan. Photo: The Global Fund / Vincent Becker