Chandari is 13, loves school, and has a best friend she’s known since childhood. Last year, she and five members of her family were diagnosed with leprosy. This is their story.

It started with Chandari’s father. He had been travelling to India for seasonal work — as many men from rural Nepal do — but kept returning with persistent infections in his feet. Through INF Nepal’s Rights and Inclusion project, a community health worker made a home visit and referred him for a leprosy test.

The results came back positive. So did those of his wife and four of their children, including Chandari. All six family members had leprosy.

Getting the family into treatment

The whole family was started on multi-drug therapy — a combination of three antibiotics that stops symptoms from worsening and means patients can no longer pass the infection to others. The treatment is effective, but it only works if it is taken consistently.

This is where education mattered as much as medicine. The family had heard that one of the tablets — a white one — contained sugar and might affect blood sugar levels. It is a common misconception in Nepal, and one that can lead people to skip doses. INF project staff worked with the family to address the myth and help them understand how and why the medication works.

“I started with a soreness in my ear and a wound. I was so scared that I might have to cut off my ears — but when the health assistant told me that the medicine will cure me, I was very happy.”

— Chandari, age 13

Life goes on — carefully

Chandari still goes to school every day. She walks to school with her best friend, who is like a sister to her. Yet her best friend does not know about the diagnosis.

It is a detail that speaks quietly to the stigma that still surrounds leprosy in Nepal. Chandari is not ashamed — she is simply navigating a world where, as her mother puts it, “people still have conservative thinking.”

“My husband used to return from India with a sore foot, so I would clean and look after him. This could be the reason that me and my children got infected. Now we have all started treatment and I am hopeful that all will be okay. I want my girl to finish school and be an independent girl.”

— Chandari’s mother

Looking ahead

The whole family remains positive that the condition will not define their lives. They are visited regularly by community health volunteers and stay in close contact with the local health post and INF project staff.

Leprosy is curable. With the right treatment, started early enough, most patients recover fully. For Chandari’s family, the hardest part was being found — and they were. The path ahead is one they are walking together.

Chandari’s family are supported by INF Nepal’s Rights and Inclusion Project. Names have not been changed in this story, with the family’s knowledge and agreement.