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Liya Su

The devotion of a man in China who insisted on staying with his girlfriend when she tried to break up with him after being diagnosed with severe kidney disease has inspired mainland social media.
The 24-year-old woman, surnamed Liu, from Shandong province in eastern China, was diagnosed in March with a condition known as uremia in which toxins build up in the blood due to kidney failure while preparing for her postgraduate exams.
Liu had been with her boyfriend Kaiyu for five years at the time.
“I wanted to end the relationship because I thought I would become a burden to him,” Liu told the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald.

To her surprise, Kaiyu refused to end their relationship and offered his unconditional support. His parents and younger sister also offered their support and regularly visited her during treatment.
Liu said she was touched by the love she received from Kaiyu’s family, especially his mother.
“Will he be happy without you? And will you be happy if he leaves you?” his mother asked Liu at the time of her diagnosis.
In a video posted online with the news report, Liu is shown lying in a hospital bed with an oxygen tube through her nostrils as she and Kaiyu give a thumbs-up sign.
Since Liu began her treatment, Kaiyu has been with her, often sleeping outside her room in the hospital corridor.
Despite being diagnosed with the condition at a late stage which requires Liu to have dialysis three times a day, she was still admitted to graduate school but applied for a one-year deferral while waiting for a kidney donor.
At the time of writing, the news report about the couple shared on Weibo had attracted more than 2,500 comments offering support and admiration.

One online commenter said: “Wow, it’s so rare. The boyfriend’s family is full of love and kindness.”
Another person said: “God will prepare a gift for kind-hearted people.”
Stories about love and commitment often trend on mainland social media.
Last month, a man in central China who put his fiancée’s life before his own when trapped by floodwaters on the same day they became engaged touched many people online.
In February, a man in eastern China who remarried his former wife the day before she went into hospital for emergency treatment of a blood disease struck a chord with millions on mainland social media.


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Liu and Kaiyu pose for a picture at the hospital where she has to undergo dialysis three times a day until she can receive a kidney transplant. Photo: Weibo

Liu says the support of her boyfriend and his family has been a huge source of comfort as she undergoes daily treatment for the disease. Photo: Weibo

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News

People & Culture

Mainland social media moved by boyfriend who refuses to break up with sick girlfriend
Woman needs dialysis 3 times a day while she awaits a kidney donor


A 24-year-old preparing for graduate school tries to end a five-year relationship after a devastating diagnosis of severe kidney disease which requires dialysis three times daily, but her boyfriend insists on staying with her.


Devoted man in China bears ‘burden’, stays with woman who wanted to break up after being diagnosed with severe kidney disease, touching hearts

Mainland social media moved by boyfriend who refuses to break up with sick girlfriend Woman needs dialysis 3 times a day while she awaits a kidney donor

Mainland social media moved by boyfriend who refuses to break up with sick girlfriend

Woman needs dialysis 3 times a day while she awaits a kidney donor