The key facts
- Ali Hasan, 5 years old, was diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy following a genetic test at Al Jalila hospital in Dubai (August)
- The cost of gene therapy is 10.6 million dirhams ($2.9 million); the campaign in Iraq raised only about 2% of the amount
- The father says that without prompt treatment the child may have about a year left to live
Diagnosis after two years of examinations
Five-year-old Ali Hasan from Iraq was diagnosed with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) — a rare, aggressive genetic disease causing progressive muscle weakness. The problems first appeared as difficulties with communication, behaviour and pronounced hyperactivity. For about two years the boy underwent neurological examinations, after which new symptoms appeared: he found it hard to climb stairs and to get up after sitting on the floor, and walking became increasingly difficult. A genetic test of a sample sent to Al Jalila Children's Hospital in Dubai in August confirmed the diagnosis.
An unattainable price for treatment
The family was told that an option could be gene therapy costing 10.6 million dirhams ($2.9 million) — a sum far exceeding their means. According to the father, Sabah Hasan, 42, selling the house in Iraq would cover only about 10% of the cost. He also said that if treatment does not begin soon, Ali may have about a year left to live. “All doors are closed in front of me, I don’t know what to do,” he told The National. “I organised a donation drive in Iraq, but I managed to raise only 2% of the amount.” Hasan approached charities, officials in Iraq and well-known people, but was refused — some said the sum was too large. “He is my eldest son, and I have a one-year-old daughter,” the father added. “Watching Ali die before my eyes, knowing that a treatment exists but is impossible to obtain, breaks my heart and his mother’s heart every day.”
Appeal to the UAE and precedents of assistance
After the failures in Iraq, Hasan turned to the UAE, where treatment is available, and to other countries. “I hope my voice reaches people all over the world to help me raise funds for the treatment,” he said. “I hope the generosity of the UAE reaches my son Ali and saves his life.” In August, The National reported that a plea from a Jordanian mother for treatment for her 16-month-old daughter Katia Abu Al Saud, who suffers from spinal muscular atrophy, was heard by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Vice President of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, who paid for treatment costing $2.4 million at Al Jalila hospital. In March 2021, Sheikh Mohammed paid for treatment worth 8 million dirhams for the Iraqi toddler Lavin Jabbar Al Kutayshi with Zolgensma — a one-time gene-replacement therapy. In July 2025, the Ruler of Dubai promised to pay for treatment costing 7 million dirhams for a Syrian girl with SMA after a public appeal by her father; he also paid for the treatment of 15-year-old Fatima Ahmed Hasan, who was diagnosed with sarcoma — after several months of care she was declared cancer-free.
