Son Sarun came to the town of pailin in Cambodia's desolate northwest because of the stories he had heard: the $100,000 ruby found just over the next hill, the $25,000 sapphire that tumbled out of trousers being laundered in the river. He hadn't heard that the once gem-rich area had been largely mined out and all that remained was swamp and mosquitoes. When the 38-year-old former soldier came down with a headache and fever last year, he couldn't afford a doctor. He was no richer when blood appeared in his urine, sputum and excrement. One morning in December he collapsed.
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