Saving a baby's life, one banana cake at a time

It was an image that captured netizens' hearts: a father carrying his baby, selling banana cake on the streets to fund his son's liver transplant.

The man is Antonio Detablan, and the baby is 8-month-old Aki.

Diagnosed with Biliary Atresia, Baby Aki probably only has two years left to live.

The only way to save him is through a liver transplant, which would cost about P1.6 million.

The online clamor over Antonio and Aki— and the banana cake— drove the “Kapuso Mo, Jessica Soho” team to track down the Detablan family in Calamba, Laguna.

It turned out that Antonio used to help out his brother in his bakery, where he learned to make banana cake.

When the shop went bankrupt, Antonio asked to have the equipment and set up his own bakery.

Since then, it has been his family's main source of income, and his baking skills is how he's trying to earn the money needed for Baby Aki’s transplant.

But because their equipment is limited, Antonio can only bake twelve loaves of banana cake, which he sells for P120 a piece.

He's lucky if he's able to sell all within the day, earning him P1,440 —a far cry from the P1.6 million he needs.

His wife Joy, who takes care of their three children, says that she sometimes finds him asleep in the bakery due to sheer exhaustion.

This isn't the first time Antonio's family was put through the struggles of having a critically ill child.

Antonio and Joy's second child Arkhin had been diagnosed with hydrocephalus, a condition where fluids build up in the brain.

They had taken numerous trips to the hospital, leaving their bakery to once again go bankrupt. They even had to pawn off their wedding rings to afford the bills.

Thankfully, Arkhin's operation was successful.

And then another blessing came in the form of Baby Aki.

Aki had fair skin, much to his parents' delight. However, at nearly five months, his skin started to darken and his eyes started to turn yellow. His stomach also began to bloat.

Because of their financial situation, Antonio and Joy weren't able to bring him for a check up immediately. They were still paying off the loans they spent on Arkhin's hospital fees.

Antonio is at a loss about where to get the money, knowing that no amount of banana cake he's able to sell will help him get that amount.

The clock is ticking; the longer time passes, the smaller his chances of surviving. The transplant needs to be done as soon as possible.

Antonio said that Aki gets cold easily so they only bathe him twice a week. He prefers to be carried, and has a hard time passing bowels.

He and Joy have been doing all they can to earn money, when the idea to sell their best-selling banana cake came to mind.

A month before Aki was diagnosed, Joy had already thought of selling the banana cake online.

Antonio also stations himself by the Nazareno church, where his viral photo was taken.

Since going viral, they had an onslaught of orders.

But it's still not enough.

They've also started to sell bags, curtains, and shirts.

To help out Baby Aki, the KMJS team prepared a surprise: they spoke to different bakeries in Laguna and Quezon City to help and bake more banana cakes.

The cakes were sold at a fundraising bazaar. Many bought the cakes, slowly increasing the funds for Aki's transplant

It may still be a long shot, but for as long as he can still breathe, the fight goes on.

For those who would like to help:

BDO Calamba Crossing - North Branch
Account name: Aquiro Jazz G. Detablan
Account number: 005910516001

— LA, GMA News