Children Cancer Stories
by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 24
Sometimes, a
seemingly trivial incident becomes the cause for lifelong suffering, and we
usually call it bad luck.
Ten-year-old, cute
looking Summaya was playing in her village. During her play she was hit by a
tree branch in her eye. It was a bad trauma and she started losing her
eyesight, her parents had to take her quickly to doctor for check up. Doctor
started treatment and sent her home. Summaya continued to have the usual pain and loss
of vision issues. Doctor gave
antibiotics but things didn’t improve. This went on for a few weeks and
then she had an offensive swelling in right eye, as well as the sticky eye. She
was referred same day to local Eye doctor. Swelling originated from eye ball and doctor advised surgery after
examination.
Summaya is the only
daughter of her parents, she has two elder brothers and all of them are school
students in Peshawar. Summaya went for surgery and came home after discharge,
but still she was not able to see. Although she was fine and her pain settled
down for some days.
After a couple of
months, she again developed swelling in her right eye with pain and fever. Upon
examination the doctor said, “We think Summaya has something called Retinoblastoma.
She will need to be referred to pediatric cancer hospital for more diagnostic
tests. Mother said” I had never heard of this cancer before; I had heard of
cancer in children but never any other forms of cancer.
She was referred
to pediatric oncology unit and after a series of investigation she was
diagnosed as having Retinoblastoma.
“Your child has cancer”
Four words NO parent ever wants
to hear.
No one wants to
hear that little children, babies and teenagers are suffering each day of this
terrible disease. But for the oncology patient’s in this world, this is a daily reality.
Retinoblastoma is a rare form of eye cancer that
usually happens in childhood. It starts in the retina -- the part of the eye that
senses light and sends pictures to the brain.
The first clue and most obvious symptom is that the eye doesn’t look
right. Specifically, its normally black pupil may look white. Other symptoms
include redness in the white of the eye and vision problems
Retinoblastoma happens when there’s a change, or mutation,
in one particular gene in a child’s DNA. That gene’s job is to control cell
division. When it doesn’t work the way it should, cells in the retina grow out
of control.
Diagnose, may involve an ultrasound,
n MRI or a CT scan (computed tomography).
A combination of treatments such as: Chemotherapy: Powerful
drugs help shrink the tumor ahead of other treatments. If the cancer hasn’t
spread, the drugs may be injected directly into the eye or into the blood vessels
that lead to it.
Cryotherapy: A touch with a super-cooled metal probe freezes
and kills cancer cells. This works best on small tumors near the front of the
eye.
Thermotherapy: A special laser kills cancer cells with
heat. Doctors use it by itself on small tumors or along with other treatments
for larger tumors.
Laser Therapy: A different kind of laser targets and
destroys the blood vessels
that supply the tumor. This works for small tumors in the back of the eye.
Radiation: There are two kinds of radiation
therapy. For small tumors, a surgeon can sew a disc that has
radioactive material inside it onto the eyeball near the tumor. Child stays in
the hospital a few days while it works, and then the disc is removed. Surgery: If
the tumor is very large by the time it’s found, it may not be possible to save
the child’s vision. In these cases, the eye may be removed.
In the winter of 2021, Summaya started her
treatment with chemotherapy.
Summaya was due 6 cycles of chemotherapy, she has
also continued his chemotherapy one course regularly in the children’s hospital
throughout.
Overall, she coped really well. She used to cry
every time she had to visit hospital and her parents and one elder brother did
very well. They didn’t have time during the day to partake of the many
activities which were due. By the end of her treatments, she has significant
mucositis and hair loss. On her good days, she would be out and about and happy
to smile for all.
Her five more chemotherapy cycles are due, its
definitely not easy to travel out of city with language barrier so frequently,
specially when one loved one family member is in great pain. But her family is
fighting with her disease. Distance and problem does not matter when your
family is suffering.
Summaya’s long treatment journey has just started
now, we all pray for the strength for her and her family and lot of prayers for
her success in her fight against disease. Aameen
Note: Names have been changed to protect
identity.
