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Selfless suicidal teen recovering

THE teenage girl in east China who attempted suicide to donate her liver to her cancer-stricken father is now in a stable condition.

The 13-year-old girl has woken from a coma and all her vital signs are improving, said an official from the hospital in Wuxi City in Jiangsu Province told Shanghai Daily today.

But she will remain in intensive care until her body has rid itself of the toxins from the more than 200 sleeping pills she took, said the official from the hospital's information office who declined to give his name. Doctors do not know how long that will take.

The girl was found breathing weakly by her mother Cui Lan after she returned home from visiting her cancer-stricken husband in hospital on January 24.

Cui found two empty bottles of sleeping pills and a letter written by her daughter saying she wanted her liver given to her father to save him after her death, according to a previous report.

The sleeping pills were prescribed for Cui, who has had chronic sleeping problems, according to the Shanghai Morning Post.

"I can't sleep at night since the incident occurred to my daughter," the 43-year-old woman told the newspaper. "I kneel down at the hospital hall each night, praying to god to give my daughter her life back."

Cui, who eight years ago retired from work early because of poor health, passed out at the hospital yesterday and is now also in medical care.

Her husband, who had been confined to their home with hepatitis since shortly after their daughter was born, was reported to have only three months to live due to liver cancer.

The family, which earns only about 1,000 yuan (US$146) a month, has spent more than 100,000 yuan to treat his cancer.

The girl's suicide attempt will worsen the family's finances as her medical bills so far have come to more than 40,000 yuan, the official said.

The girl still needs several operations to treat burns to her hips and ankles as she lay on an eclectic blanket for more than 20 hours before her mother found her.

The official said the hospital donated more than 60,000 yuan this morning to Cui and has set up a donation box for the family near the father's ward.

The father and girl are staying in the same hospital, but he has not been told about his daughter's suicide attempt.

The family was told on Tuesday the father did not have long to live and the hospital said it would try to prolong his life so his daughter can see him before he dies.

The girl was very polite and good at painting and school, a neighbor surnamed Ruan told the Shanghai Morning Post.

"She and her father have a very close relationship," Ruan said. "They often ride bikes to have outings together and the father always says he was quite lucky to have such a daughter."




 

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