Representatives from Dantri had just visited Vu Thu Giang and her son Ho Ngoc Hanh in Dien Chau District and transferred VND 61,591,120 which readers sent to the newspaper's charity fund to support them.

Receiving the donations, Hanh, 20, sent his sincere thanks to Dantri and all the kind donors for their support. Hanh shared that he also received VND 55,200,000 from donors sent to his bank account.

"We are very moved to have received so much love and support from so many people," Hanh said. "Thanks to your kind help and encouragement, we feel very positive and can continue our treatment."

Vu Thu Giang, 41, has been paralysed for the past six years due to meningitis. She had to depend on her husband and two sons daily. The family incurred large debts following her years of hospital treatment, and they faced more difficulties after Hanh developed kidney failure two years ago.

Giang and her son.

From a strong young man working as a construction worker with his father to support the family, Hanh now can only stay home doing light housework.

The woman said that they had also borrowed money to cover medical treatment for her son but the treatment fees were now beyond their ability to pay. They owe up to VND200 million. Meanwhile, her husband's modest daily income of VND300,000 is not enough to cover medical fees for her and Hanh, while their young son is just nine.

"I'm willing to stop my treatment to spare money for our sons and I really hope that people can help save my ill son," she said. "He's too young."

Meanwhile, Hanh said that he hoped he could be healthy enough to take care of his ill mother. "I sometimes have to hide my problems as my mum has enough pain," he said. "I don't want to see her worrying about me. I’ve had to go to hospital every two months for regular checkups but recently I've skipped doctor appointments as we don't have any money."