A five-year-old boy's stomach inflated like a balloon - weighing 15kg due to blocked intestines in the Philippines.

JL Biad has a rare birth defect called Hirschsprung's disease, which affects the colon, but it was left undiagnosed as he grew with the appearance of a healthy child in Zamboanga del Sur province.

Like other children, JL loved playing with cars, eating fresh food like grilled fish, and enjoying video games on his phone.

However, the sick boy became bedridden over the last few months as his stomach rapidly expanded to an abnormal size, which kept him from being able to stand up and carry himself.

His stomach bulged and stretched the skin on his thin body, making his veins visible through the skin.

Mother Lynie and father James took their son to the hospital for a check-up and found out about his condition earlier this month.

Lynie said: 'Sometimes I want to ask God what I did wrong to deserve this. We are afraid of losing him. We love him so much.'

While JL's parents were off to work - his father taking jobs at a coconut farm and his mother cleaning houses or babysitting - he was being cared for by his brother Jhujie. He said he would help his sibling relieve the pain in his stomach by massaging it, as shown by their parents.

Jhujie said: 'I miss the days when he was still not sick. We would play the whole day.'

With the help of good Samaritans, JL was taken to the hospital again for an x-ray and ultrasound.

Dr Barbie Normita Talip-Lucero of Zamboanga Del Sur Medical Center said: 'Half of his colon was filled with air, while on the lower part was stool unable to pass.'

The doctor added that JL would need an operation costing the equivalent of several thousand dollars to fix his large intestines.

Dr Barbie added: 'Although the chances are very high, we are worried about his condition (malnutrition).'

JL's mother said they are now working on preparing the boy's body for the operation, including taking vitamins and gathering donations for medical bills.

Hirschsprung's disease affects around 1 in 5,000 babies and causes problems with the large intestine and bowel movements due to missing nerve cells in the rectum area. The reason for those missing cells is unclear.

It is most commonly diagnosed in infancy, though sometimes symptoms may not appear until later childhood when chronic constipation persists over time.