First SMA Patient To Complete All Levels Of Higher Education At UMPSA Dies

KUANTAN, Oct 27 (Bernama) -- Dr Siti Hawa Apandi, the first Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) patient in the country to complete all levels of higher education at the same university, died here today.

In a Facebook post, Universiti Malaysia Pahang Al-Sultan Abdullah (UMPSA) expressed condolences to the family of Siti Hawa, an alumna of the university's Faculty of Computing.

The late Siti Hawa was also a recipient of the Malaysia Book of Records (MBOR) for being the "First Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) Patient to Complete Continuous Higher Education Studies From a Single University.

"May her soul be showered with mercy and placed among the faithful," read the post.

Previously, the media reported that the deceased had a rare genetic disease called SMA since childhood, which caused her muscle functions to deteriorate progressively, confining her entirely to a wheelchair.

However, her physical limitations did not dampen her spirits as she enrolled at UMPSA in 2007 for a Diploma programme and then continued her studies to a Bachelor's Degree in Software Engineering, followed by a Master's Degree in Computer Science, before successfully obtaining a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI).

Throughout her life,  Siti Hawa’s academic excellence was also recognised through several prestigious awards, including the Heitech Industry Excellence Award 2013 and the Abdullah Bin Ummi Maktum Inclusive Excellence Award during her PhD studies.

Siti Hawa was hospitalised last year due to a bacterial infection and spent about 50 days in the intensive care unit (ICU) of Tengku Ampuan Afzan Hospital here.

She passed away at the age of 37 at her residence here today.

-- BERNAMA