Warriors and Survivors - 83

Children Cancer Stories by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 83

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. 

 

It has been three months since Shahzad was admitted in the hospital. Nine-year-old Shahzad is from Bahawalpur. He comes from a village and his father is laborer with five children.  It is not easy for him to raise his family even without the burden of disease. With a sick child, father’s life is even worse now. But He is still determined for the life of his child. 

Shehzad had fever for a month. His parents took him to another city Multan for treatment. There is a tertiary care hospital in Multan. Shehzad had to undergo several tests and he was diagnosed as AML (Acute Myeloid Leukemia). It was a devastating news for the family as Shehzad is too young to understand the disease and possible consequences. Shehzad was referred to children hospital.

Treatment was initiated in hospital three months ago and the parents had a sigh of relief, thinking their child will be better in some time but no one knows how much time as it is. AML is with so many possible complications and chances of infection. 

The parents managed everything somehow for the treatment of their little angel from living out of town to leaving other children behind. His father even had to leave his job to stay with his young lad and making arrangements for the medications and his tests. 

Sometimes Shehzad insist to be with his father, and he has to stay with him. Life is more difficult than the disease itself.  Shehzad is in pain, His parents are in much more pain than him and they are looking at the doctors and praying for some miracle for the cure of their child. 

After all this pain and efforts so far, Shehzad has undergone two chemo cycles and his latest reports are not up to the mark for further treatment. Shehzad is on palliation now. Despite the counselling by the team, his mother is still satisfied that her child is not in pain. 

 

 

It is heart breaking situation, an angel who is only nine years old and who had to study and realize his dreams is now on hospital bed waiting for his death. 

Shehzad knows his condition now, he has realized that his life is short now, he does not smile, nor even talk.  He just keeps lying on bed on pain medications waiting for his turn to come. 

Though it is not easy to write about a dying child, but it is more difficult to see them and not being able to do anything for these children and it’s even worse to be a parent of such a child. 

Death is the biggest reality of this world which no one can deny. But a little angel’s death and waiting for death is like dying every moment before death. I am unable to express their state in words anymore. 

Prayers for the ease for Shehzad and his family. Aameen

Request for prayers for  Shehzad, that he recovers as soon as possible. May Allah grant some miracle for his complete recovery and may his disease never come back. Aameen

Prayers for the ease of Shehzad and his family. May Allah recover all patients. May Allah ease and cure all patients and cancer warriors.

Note: Names have been changed to protect identity