This courageous little fighter does not know life outside of the hospital. With support from the Children’s Hospital Trust, an urgent operation will help change her and her young parents’ future for the better.
Western Cape, South Africa (30 June 2026) – Four-month-old Azalea is a fighter. She has spent every single day of her little life in the hospital, but continues to grow stronger as she prepares for the operation that could change her future.
Azalea was born with a rare condition that caused a large mass to grow on her tongue, and she has faced challenge after challenge from the very beginning. She cannot feed normally, needs constant medical care and has never had the chance to go home.
“Born with a rare condition that caused a large mass on her tongue, Azalea has already endured countless challenges.” shares the Children’s Hospital Trust.
It has been an emotional journey for her young parents, too, who have stayed by her side through every struggle and every small milestone she has reached, holding onto hope as they wait for the life-saving surgery planned for next month.
‘We didn’t know if she would make it at first, but now she is four months old and going strong,’ her dad, Josiam, said in a video shared by the trust.
All their focus has been on Azalea’s care, but life outside the hospital has become incredibly difficult for the small family. Far from home and without an income, they’ve had to navigate months of uncertainty while remaining strong and close to their daughter.
The Children’s Hospital Trust has stepped in to help them through its Family Care Project.
The project sources and administers funding for sick and injured children, and supports families like Azalea’s who find themselves spending long periods in the hospital with an ill child, helping them with practical essentials that ease some of the pressure during an already overwhelming time.
As Azalea gets closer to the operation everyone hopes will transform her future, the trust is encouraging South Africans to step in and help Azalea and other children like her, who are facing unimaginable battles.
If you would like to show your support, find out more here.
“By donating to the Children’s Hospital Trust’s Family Care Project, you can help provide practical support and comfort to families like Azalea’s when they need it most.”


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