Afrin Gul: When Compassion Healed More Than a Spine
Afrin Gul: When Compassion Healed More Than a Spine Afrin Gul, a 13-year-old girl from Pakistan, carried a burden no child should ever have to bear. She was suffering from a severe spinal disorder that forced her neck to bend sharply forward. Over time, her condition worsened to the point where walking became painful, sitting was exhausting, and even eating required immense effort. Afrin could barely lift her head to see the world. What should have been a joyful childhood was instead defined by discomfort, limitation, and silent endurance. A Medical Challenge That Touched a Human Heart Afrin’s condition was rare and extremely complex. Treating it required advanced expertise and multiple high-risk spinal surgeries—procedures many would hesitate to perform. That is when Dr. Rajagopal Krishnan , a leading spine surgeon based in Delhi, India, came across her case. Instead of seeing a border, a passport, or political differences, he saw a child in pain. Moved by compassion, Dr. Kris...