Warriors and Survivors - 230

 Children Cancer Stories by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 230

I am Rukh Yusuf, Clinical Pharmacist, also specialized in Total Parenteral Nutrition and Bone Marrow Transplant. I have been working in the 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. 

A Small Child-Big Diagnosis: Hammad’s Story

Hammad is only one and a half years old. At this age, most parents are caught up in watching their child take unsteady steps, speak their first clear words, and begin to show tiny glimpses of their personality. But for Hammad’s parents, life has taken a very different turn. Instead of simply enjoying these milestones, they are weighed down by the words of a diagnosis they had never even heard before: beta thalassemia.

When the doctor explained it, they could barely follow. The name itself felt heavy and foreign. They had taken Hammad to the clinic after noticing that he seemed unusually pale, often tired, and not as playful as other children his age. They thought maybe he was low in vitamins, maybe a simple syrup or tonic would help. But after blood tests, they were told their son had a serious blood disorder, something that would not go away with a short treatment.

For a moment, both parents were speechless. They did not know what to ask, because they did not even understand what it meant.

Coming to Terms with the Unknown

For families who have never heard of thalassemia, the diagnosis is not just frightening, it is confusing. Hammad’s parents had questions piling up in their minds: Will he recover? Will he always be sick? What does this mean for his future? They did not have the words to ask, and even when the doctor explained, it was difficult to absorb.

Beta thalassemia is a genetic blood disorder where the body cannot make enough healthy red blood cells. Without treatment, it causes severe anemia. The only way to manage it is through regular blood transfusions and ongoing medical care. For a small child, that means hospital visits will become a part of life.

When Hammad’s parents understood this, a silence settled over their home. They looked at their little boy, still smiling at them, too young to know anything about illness. And they wondered how they would carry him through this unknown road.

The First Steps in Care

The days after the diagnosis felt unreal. Relatives and friends asked about Hammad’s health, and his parents found themselves hesitating. How do you explain something that you are still struggling to understand yourself?

They began reading, searching, and asking doctors for more information. They learned that children with beta thalassemia often need transfusions every few weeks. They learned about iron buildup in the body, and the medicines that help reduce it. They learned that while there is no easy cure, medical advances and proper care can give these children a chance at a better life.

But behind every fact they read, there was a quiet ache. No parent imagines their toddler spending childhood in and out of hospitals.

The Emotional Weight

For Hammad’s parents, the hardest part is not just the treatment it is the uncertainty. They wonder how they will explain this to him when he grows older. They think about the financial and emotional burden of constant medical care. They worry about whether they will be strong enough to manage it all. Whether Hammad will be strong enough to bear this all

At the same time, they feel the quiet isolation that often comes with rare diagnoses. Few people around them truly understand what they are facing. And yet, their love for Hammad keeps them moving, one day at a time.

Why Awareness Matters

Hammad’s story is not just about one child. Every year, many families in South Asia and around the world discover that their child has thalassemia. Often, like Hammad’s parents, they hear the name for the very first time only after diagnosis.

What makes this especially important is that thalassemia is preventable. Since it is a genetic condition, couples can undergo simple blood tests before marriage or pregnancy to know if they carry the trait. If both parents are carriers, there is a risk of having a child with thalassemia.

Awareness can change futures. If more families knew about screening, many could be spared the shock and pain of an unexpected diagnosis. Communities could talk more openly about genetic conditions instead of keeping silent out of fear or stigma.

Looking Ahead

For now, Hammad is too young to know the challenges ahead. He still laughs when his father tosses him in the air, still clings to his mother when he feels sleepy, still lives in the innocence of babyhood. His parents, though, are beginning a journey they never imagined.

They are learning to balance hospital visits with normal family life, to manage their fears while giving Hammad the love and comfort every child deserves. And perhaps most importantly, they are learning that they are not alone. Other families have walked this road, support groups exist, and medical care though demanding, is possible.

A Gentle Reminder

Hammad’s story is a reminder for all of us. Illness does not only affect bodies; it touches families, hopes, and futures. Beta thalassemia is not just a medical condition it is a lifelong reality that parents and children must navigate together.

By talking about it, by sharing stories like Hammad’s, we can create understanding. We can encourage more people to get tested, more communities to support affected families, and more compassion for the quiet struggles that often go unseen.

Hammad’s parents still do not have all the answers. They are still speechless at times, still afraid. But they hold on to one truth: their little boy deserves every chance at life. And for him, they will face whatever comes next.

Prayers for Hammad and all the sick children and their families who have to face this pain of cancer. May Allah make it easy for them. Aameen

Warriors and Survivors - 229

Children Cancer Stories by Rukh Yusuf - Blog # 229

I am Rukh Yusuf, Clinical Pharmacist, also specialized in Total Parenteral Nutrition and Bone Marrow Transplant. I have worked in the Pediatric Oncology unit of a public hospital. 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.

Hassan’s Story

In a modest home tucked inside one of Lahore’s crowded neighborhoods, six-year-old Hassan once lived a life filled with ordinary joys. He loved to chase pigeons across the rooftop, play cricket with cousins in the narrow street, and fall asleep with a marble clenched tightly in his hand, as if it were treasure. His laughter often echoed through the courtyard, a sound his parents believed would never fade.

But life began to shift in small, troubling ways. Hassan grew tired more quickly, choosing to sit on the steps and watch his friends instead of joining their games. He began missing school, his appetite disappeared, and the sparkle in his eyes dulled. At first, his parents thought it was weakness, something a tonic or homemade remedies could fix. But hospital visits and endless tests finally revealed the truth: Hassan had cancer.

The news struck his parents like a blow they could not recover from. His father, a shopkeeper, spent that evening sitting in silence, unable to look at anyone. His mother cried quietly into her dupatta, careful not to let Hassan see her tears. She knew children sense more than they understand. How could she explain to her little boy that his childhood had been interrupted by an illness too heavy even for adults to bear?

From that moment, their lives were reshaped. Hospital corridors replaced playgrounds, and the sound of medical machines replaced the hum of everyday life. Hassan, once so full of restless energy, now spends hours lying in a hospital bed. His body has grown frail, but his spirit though fragile, still flickers. On better days, he asks for his toy car and pushes it gently along the blanket, a small reminder that beneath the illness, he is still a child.

His mother rarely leaves his side. She sleeps on a wooden bench beside his bed, her scarf folded into a thin pillow. Night after night, she watches his chest rise and fall, whispering quiet prayers into the silence. She remembers the days when he would climb onto her lap and beg her for stories. Now, she is the one telling him stories in the dim glow of hospital lights, trying to convince herself as much as him that everything will be all right.

Hassan’s father carries his burden differently. Each morning, he opens his shop, trying to earn just enough to pay for medicines and tests. In the evenings, he hurries to the hospital, exhaustion heavy on his face but determination in his eyes. Neighbors notice his struggle sometimes slipping him a small note of money, sometimes preparing meals for his family. These acts of kindness, however small, are lifelines that keep them afloat.

In Pakistan, families like Hassan’s face not just the illness but the crushing reality of cost, distance, and limited treatment options. Cancer care for children is not only a medical journey but a social and financial one. Parents often feel like they are carrying an impossible weight, yet they carry it still because the thought of giving up is more unbearable than the suffering itself.

And in the middle of it all is Hassan. His innocence makes the contrast sharper. A child of six should be learning new words at school, not new medical terms. He should be chasing kites on rooftops, not watching IV drips. Yet, despite everything, Hassan endures. Some days with tears, some days with laughter, always with a courage that humbles those around him.

His story is not only about illness. It is about the strength of a family who refuses to let go, about the resilience of a child who still finds reasons to smile, and about the quiet hope that grows even in the darkest hospital corridors. Hassan is more than a patient; he is a reminder that love, though tested by suffering, can still stand firm, carrying families through storms they never imagined facing.

Prayers for Hassan and all the sick children and their families who have to face this pain of cancer. May Allah make it easy for them. Aameen