Warriors and Survivors - 50

 

Children Cancer Stories by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 50

"Rhabdomyosarcoma"

 

I am Rukh Yusuf, Clinical Pharmacist, also specialized in Total Parenteral Nutrition and Bone Marrow Transplant. I have been working in Pediatric Oncology unit of a public hospital for several years. The mission of this blog is to bring to you the real-life stories of child patients suffering from cancer. Cancer is still a difficult disease to handle and treat. However, when it strikes the children, some so young that they cannot even speak, their agony is beyond expression and words. Let us pray especially for children suffering from cancer for early and complete remission. May Allah shower His Merciful Blessings upon them. Aameen.

Today I am writing my 50^th blog. Last year in Ramadan, I started my first blog. At that time, I was not sure I will be able to come this far or even more. Fiftieth blog means I have discussed fifty real stories of children with such a deadly disease and fifty families suffering in silence. Some are lucky enough to become survivors and most are still fighting. Few of them have lost their battles.

I know some mothers who have lost their children but still come to hospital to help other fighting mothers. It’s about strength, they know the grief of others very well as they have passed through it.

Today I am going to introduce a four-year-old pure soul who is in such a grave pain that I am unable to forget him and his mother since I met them. One can easily see his extreme pain on his innocent face. He is oxygen dependent, sleeping under the effect of pain medications. Breathing hardly even with oxygen. He is in palliative care as his cancer is not curable anymore.

Just imagine the emotional state of a mother whose four-year-old is going to die soon with such a painful death. I felt that the mother has become emotionless after hearing such a terrible news. She was sitting near his head and was just watching everything blankly. I pray no parent would ever have to hear such terrible news about their children.

Abu Bakar was only three years old when he had facial swelling that got worse with the passage of time. Parents took him to Jinnah hospital and after series of work up and some initial treatment, He was diagnosed as case of RMS (Rhabdomyosarcoma) after mass biopsy.

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is a rare type of cancer that forms in soft tissue — specifically skeletal muscle tissue or sometimes hollow organs such as the bladder or uterus. RMS can occur at any age, but it most often affects children. Although RMS can arise anywhere in the body, it's more likely to start in the Head and neck area, urinary system, such as the bladder, skin and soft tissue, reproductive system, such as the vagina, uterus and testes and arms and legs. The prognosis and treatment decisions depend on the type of Rhabdomyosarcoma, where it starts, tumor size and whether the cancer had spread.

His treatment started soon after he landed in our oncology unit. Till now, four chemotherapy cycles have been completed but his recent investigation shows that his cancer has spread and no treatment can affect him now. His lungs have been affected badly, it’s hard for him to breath. There is nothing much that can be done except reducing his pain at this stage.

It is very heartbreaking to see him in such pain, knowing that his mother is counting his dear son’s breaths sitting near him. No one can imagine the mother’s condition and I could not decide as well whether she is in deep grief, or she has accepted the loss of his son who is still in front of her. The kid is still in front of my eyes, and I am praying for his recovery knowing his condition in detail.

We can pray for the ease of the suffering family and the complete health and recovery of Abubakar and all warriors who are suffering silently and those who even don’t know their disease and what is going on with them.

May Allah ease and cure all patients and cancer warriors.

 

 

Note: Names have been changed to protect identity

 

Warriors and Survivors - 49

 

Children Cancer Stories by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 49

B-Cell Non Hodgkins Lymphoma

 

I am Rukh Yusuf, Clinical Pharmacist, also specialized in Total Parenteral Nutrition and Bone Marrow Transplant. I have been working in Pediatric Oncology unit of a public hospital for several years. The mission of this blog is to bring to you the real-life stories of child patients suffering from cancer. Cancer is still a difficult disease to handle and treat. However, when it strikes the children, some so young that they cannot even speak, their agony is beyond expression and words. Let us pray especially for children suffering from cancer for early and complete remission. May Allah shower His Merciful Blessings upon them. Aameen.

Ali Hamza is only four-year-old young, little, cute boy. He is from Jhang and was living happily with his family in Jhang. His father is laborer and does different kinds of labor work whatever is available.  Among siblings he has an elder brother only.

Ali Hamza was healthy until he was four. He started getting pale and with puffy body, at first parents did not notice, later he developed fever and body pain as well. When the condition prevailed, they took him to local doctor who transfused blood to him.

He did not improve much, local physician referred him to children hospital for proper work up and diagnosis. Ali Hamza was admitted initially in medical unit and from there his initial investigations and treatment was started and later he was shifted to Oncology unit. Here he was diagnosed as case of B Cell NHL on Flow cytometry.

His treatment has been started since couple of months. Ali Hamza looks generally stable but little angel has stage four severe disease. His two courses of chemotherapy have been completed and more to go.

Non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) is generally divided into 2 main types, based on whether it starts in B lymphocytes (B cells) or T lymphocytes (T cells). There are many different types of B-cell lymphomas. Treatment usually depends both on the type of lymphoma and the stage (extent) of the disease, but many other factors can be important as well.

B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) tends to grow quickly. Most often, the treatment is chemotherapy, usually with a regimen of 4 drugs known as CHOP (cyclophosphamide, doxorubicin, vincristine, and prednisone), plus the monoclonal antibody rituximab. This regimen, known as R-CHOP, is most often given in cycles 3 weeks apart. Because this regimen contains the drug doxorubicin, which can damage the heart, it may not be suitable for patients with heart problems, so other chemo regimens may be used instead.

 

Little one does not know about his disease; he is too young to understand. I could see that his mother doesn’t know fully the disease and its severity. Seeing these families and parents I sometimes feel that ignorance is a bliss in some cases. As they are not fully aware about the details of the disease, so they have the courage to handle it, otherwise it is dying like condition every moment when your child is terminally sick.

Most people who seek treatment in public sector hospitals usually belong to lower middle class with little or no formal education. Even after counseling, their understanding about treatment and disease consequences is vague. But this is generally good for them to a certain extent, they keep going and have hopes for better that enables them to fight with the disease and hardships they have to face.

 

We can pray for the ease of the suffering family and the complete health and recovery of Ali Hamza and all warriors who are suffering silently and those who even don’t know their disease and what is going on with them.

May Allah ease and cure all patients and cancer warriors.

 

 

Note: Names have been changed to protect identity

 

Warriors and Survivors -48

Adrenocortical Tumor

Children Cancer Stories by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 48

 

I am Rukh Yusuf, Clinical Pharmacist, also specialized in Total Parenteral Nutrition and Bone Marrow Transplant. I have been working in Pediatric Oncology unit of a public hospital for several years. The mission of this blog is to bring to you the real-life stories of child patients suffering from cancer. Cancer is still a difficult disease to handle and treat. However, when it strikes the children, some so young that they cannot even speak, their agony is beyond expression and words. Let us pray especially for children suffering from cancer for early and complete remission. May Allah shower His Merciful Blessings upon them. Aameen.

Sawab Fatima is nine years old female with stage three Adrenocortical carcinoma from Jhang. She was all fine until seven years of age. Suddenly she had episodes of vomiting off and on with weight gain and excessive hair growth on whole body. She also had coarse voice gradually.

Sawab Fatima has a younger brother, and her mother is taking care of her both children alone as Sawab’s father had died few years ago.

She was taken to local hospital and medications were given but she did not improve. Her condition was same for few months. Fatima’s mother was seeing her worsening situation and took her to Children’s hospital on some one’s advice. It was a difficult step to move with her younger children alone to another city, but poor mother had to do something for the health of her only daughter.

She was admitted in hospital for complete investigation and work up. She was diagnosed as right adrenocortical tumor and her surgery was planned to remove it.

She was shifted to Surgery department where her tumor was removed and successfully, she was discharged and had to come for follow up.

On Follow up Swab Fatima was shifted to oncology department. Here, her investigation work up started and her chemotherapy was initiated for stage three right adrenocortical tumor.

Her first cycle was completed in early February, and she is on second chemotherapy cycle and still has more to go. Little girl is bearing chemotherapy so far patiently and her mother’s bravery is commendable who is fighting with her daughter’s disease. As she is travelling frequently from Jhang and living here with two little kids. She sews clothes and earns for her children.

Life is more difficult for single parents, especially single mothers in the age when they have younger children to take care and earn for them too. Life becomes more miserable when unluckily some of the family member has to fight with the difficult disease like cancer.

Not only Swab Fatima is a warrior but her whole family is, including the younger brother who is travelling frequently with his family being single male member. Her mother is great warrior she is really deserving family who needs help of all kinds, moral, ethical, financial etc.

We can pray for the ease of the suffering family and the complete health and recovery of Swab Fatima and all warriors who are suffering silently and those who even don’t know their disease and what is going on with them.

May Allah ease and cure all patients and cancer warriors.

 

 

Note: Names have been changed to protect identity

 

Warriors and Survivors -47

 

 "Thalassemia Major"

Children Cancer Stories by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 47

 

I am Rukh Yusuf, Clinical Pharmacist, also specialized in Total Parenteral Nutrition and Bone Marrow Transplant. I have been working in Pediatric Oncology unit of a public hospital for several years. The mission of this blog is to bring to you the real-life stories of child patients suffering from cancer. Cancer is still a difficult disease to handle and treat. However, when it strikes the children, some so young that they cannot even speak, their agony is beyond expression and words. Let us pray especially for children suffering from cancer for early and complete remission. May Allah shower His Merciful Blessings upon them. Aameen.

Zeba is 16 years old girl who has grown elder receiving thalassemia treatment. She is from Kashmir. She was diagnosed as having thalassemia major when she was less than five years old.  Not only Zeba but her elder brother was also suffering with thalassemia major. Poor father who is laborer, had been managing the treatment since more than a decade and still doing efforts for the life of his child.

Zeba’s brother passed away two years ago due to complications caused by thalassemia. Zeba too is striving hard to win this battle, but her victory seems difficult due to financial and social circumstances. Most of us know that thalassemic patients need frequent blood transfusions resulting in iron accumulation in different organs, mainly heart and kidneys. This excess iron is lethal, and iron chelators are being used to remove extra iron from body. Iron chelating agents are lifesaving medicines for any thalassemic patient.

It is sad reality that thalassemic patients do not survive longer but when they do and luckily reach teenage, they are refused treatment from a child unit being above the age of children range.

Zeba has also been refused because she is above child’s range. Poverty and children’s diseases have made her father older earlier. He does not have a fixed income source. Although Zeba gets blood transfusions from some charity institutes but she needs a regular supply of iron chelator medicines which are not so costly, but Zeba’s father cannot afford to buy. He hardly manages to travel from Kashmir to Lahore.

He is so simple and innocent at this old age with so many wounds on his heart, specially death of young son and brutal disease of a young daughter since more than a decade.

Punjab Government is already doing great, we have a very large Thalassemia center which is providing free treatment facilities since long. But when these children go to teenage, they don’t have a facility for treatment and free medication. Most of the families are poor or they get poor while fighting this battle. There is need of a center or clinic/program which can provide free medications of thalassemia major patients above 16 years or older. So that some of fortunate or may be unfortunate ones who live till the age of 16 or above can have their treatment from these units or centers. Government or philanthropists should come forward and make this happen to facilitate these miserable lives. Pakistanis are no doubt most generous and full of philanthropists.

May Allah help us to be able to help others and to do something worthwhile for the suffering of others. Aameen

I pray for healthy and smooth recovery of Zeba and all our warriors, and healthy life for all our survivors May Allah bless all those families who are fighting this cruel battle. Aameen

May Allah help us to be kind to patients and attendants and grant us courage to keep ourselves strong and updated.

 

 

Note: Names have been changed to protect identity