After spending her childhood moving on her knees, 12-year-old Nguyen Thi Trang from Quang Binh Province can finally walk on her own feet.
Born with clubfoot and heel deformities, Trang’s legs could not straighten, forcing her to rely on her knees for mobility. Despite a failed surgery at age six, hope was reignited when she was introduced to the Nang Buoc Tuoi Tho Charity Fund, which brought her to FV Hospital in HCMC. Dr. Le Trong Phat, head of the hospital’s Orthopedic Surgery Department, diagnosed her condition and devised a two-stage surgical plan.
In November 2022, the first procedure corrected her left leg through tendon releases and foot realignment. In July 2024, her right leg underwent other surgeries. After seven months of intensive physical therapy, Trang took her first steps with the aid of crutches. Doctors are optimistic that she will soon walk independently.
HCMC’s first metro line among world’s greatest places in 2025
HCMC’s first metro line, which connects Ben Thanh Market and Suoi Tien Theme Park, has been listed as one of the world’s 100 greatest places in 2025 by the U.S.-based Time magazine, reported the local media.
Time unveiled its prestigious list in late March, highlighting the metro line as Vietnam’s sole representative. The publication praised the line for offering visitors a convenient alternative to the city’s bustling streets, helping them bypass the blaring horns and heavy rush-hour traffic.
Other Asian destinations on the list include Bangladesh’s Zebun Nessa Mosque, Japan’s Nintendo Museum, China’s Beijing Library, Mongolia’s Eagle Hunter Cultural Center, and Bhutan’s Wangduechhoeling Palace Museum.
A student’s collection of unique seashells
After nine years, Tran Tien Dat, a third-year student at the College of Aquaculture and Fisheries, Can Tho University, has had a unique collection of more than 500 seashells of over 100 species of marine mollusks.
Living in the Mekong Delta city of Tra Vinh, Dat has fallen in love with marine creatures. He started collecting seashells in 2016. Many of the seashells in his collection have been given to him by fishermen from other localities and collectors having the same hobby as him. He has also exchanged or bought seashells from several groups on social media.
The prices of seashells in Dat’s collection range from tens of thousands of to tens of millions of Vietnam dong, depending on their rarity. Especially, the shell of a species of large sea snail (Entemnotrochus rumphii), which is often found in Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines, with its diameter reaching 21 centimeters, was asked to buy for US$2,500, but Dat refused. He told thanhnien.vn that he was lucky to buy this giant slit snail’s shell from a fisherman in Tra Vinh, adding that he could earn a decent living by selling seashells.
Donated organs help save the lives of seven patients
On February 17, a 43-year-old man was transferred to Thong Nhat Hospital in the state of multiple injuries. The doctors at the emergency ward conducted cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) for the victim and transferred him to the intensive care unit. However, due to critical injuries, the man was confirmed to be brain-dead by the doctors on February 19. The victim’s relatives agreed to donate his organs for patients in need.
After a consultation with medical experts from other hospitals, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Dinh Thanh, director of Thong Nhat Hospital, and the experts decided to undertake surgery to take out the organs of the brain-dead man.
According to nld.com.vn, the donor’s two kidneys were transplanted to two patients at Thong Nhat Hospital; the heart and part of the liver were grafted to two patients at the University Medical Center HCMC; another part of the liver was transplanted to a patient at Hue Central Hospital in Hue City; and the two corneas were grafted to two patients at Cho Ray Hospital in HCMC.
The human organ transplantation program from brain-dead people has become an important task of hospitals nationwide, offering survival opportunities for quite a few patients in need of organ transplantation.
