Written By: Debjani Arora | Updated : February 4, 2016 10:31 AM IST
I met Shanti and her daughter Sahara a few days back at the office of Cancer Patients Aid Association, an NGO which helps cancer patients get assistance for treatment and helps them resurrect their lives. Shanti learnt that her daughter has cancer when she was just 2.5 years old. Hers is the story of this brave mother who fought all odds to help her daughter become cancer free. This is what Shanti told me:
When my daughter Sahara was born my joy knew no bounds. As a baby, she was very active and kept me on my toes all day long. Looking back, it seems like those were the most precious days of her childhood because what followed next was a horrific fight against cancer that lasted her entire childhood. The word cancer itself sends a chill down the spine, so you can imagine what it was like when I learnt that my angel who had barely started walking was a victim of leukaemia blood cancer. Here are three kinds of blood cancers that you should know about.
My world turned upside down
We were in Nepal when Sahara was born and her father was away in Dubai, where he worked. She was a little more than two years old when a bout of fever made her go pale and sick. We went to a doctor who gave her some medications and asked us to leave. Worried, I gave her those medications and waited for them to work their magic on her. The medications did work and my child came back to her usual self, but something was amiss. She was always warm and the fever kept coming back with a vengeance after every few days. This worried me to no end. Each time I went to the doctors they dismissed my concerns saying it is a mild infection and things will be fine soon. But my heart knew that something was wrong with my child. The more I pressurised them to do further tests or evaluation the more they refused. The doctors said since she looked healthy and was playful there was nothing to worry about her health. Here is all that you need to know about cancer in children.
But when the fever refused to go away after two months, barring a two or three days break between the bouts, the doctors took her case seriously. That was when a blood test was done to check for infection. The reports were shocking she had abnormal white blood cells and platelets and her haemoglobin was merely 6. A CBC or complete blood count is done to check for the abnormal looking red, white cells and platelets that can indicate a problem like leukaemia. When the blood test showed the abnormal readings, a bone marrow test was the next in line. And this test was equally painful for her as was the previous one. In a bone marrow test, a sample is taken from the bone marrow of the hip and sent to the lab for tests. This test further confirmed the verdict that my two-and-half-year-old was suffering from blood cancer. And with that, my whole world came crashing down.
The fight begins
I didn t have much time to sit and cry my heart out, left alone with my daughter I had to decide my next course of action. But I didn t know how to fight this deadly cancer. I thought cancer is an ailment for the grow ups. When I took her to a reputed children s hospital in Nepal, they suggested I come to Mumbai, where I could get the best treatment for my daughter. They referred me to Tata Memorial Hospital. Coming to Mumbai was a big decision as not only was the place new for me, I didn t even know the language to converse with people. That was the time I called my husband to reach Mumbai from Dubai, but I never heard a word from him and I could not trace his whereabouts after the last call. Find out iwhether cancer can be cured with alternate therapies.
In Mumbai, I landed up at a relative s place from where I started to arrange for funds for her treatment. I ran from pillar to post asking organisations and NGOs to help me treat my daughter that is how I learnt about the Cancer Patients Aid Association and finally her treatment started. Well, this was just the beginning of the battle. A treatment modality for leukaemia is based on one s age, overall health and the stage of the condition. Since Sahara s condition was in the first stage, the doctors suggested chemotherapy and medications. All this while, my daughter had been like my rock solid support which kept me going. She was very young and innocent to know what was happening around her and how her body was becoming her own enemy with every passing moment without the treatment.
I remember the first day I took her to the hospital she didn t show any signs of fear or trauma. Interestingly, she didn t cry when the nurses injected the drugs into her veins. It seemed to me that she had become immune to needle pricks. I spent almost eight hours every day in the hospital for her treatment. And when you are in a hospital things aren t easy, you need help to get the medicines from the chemist, fill certain documents, submit files, run around doing all mundane formalities. But I had no help, so I carried my frail child who was weak from the injected drugs on my lap and did all formalities. The most heart-wrenching thing for me was to see her lose all her hair due to chemotherapy. I made a customised cap for her with two chotis (braids) so that she didn t miss her hair and she really loved wearing the cap every wherever she went.
She had to go through two rounds of chemotherapy every month along with medications that were prescribed to help her revive. While chemotherapy was easy for her to take, oral medications became a bane. The doctors and nurses would literally hold on to her hands and legs to make her take the medications and instantly she would throw it up. But soon she became dear to everyone. A treatment that continued for over three and half years made Tata Memorial Hospital our second home. She grew up frequenting the hospitals more than frequenting parks and playgrounds. And she developed a kind of maturity that I could never imagine. Whenever she saw any child crying in the ward she would go and say, Don t worry, things will be fine. I can assure you. In fact, she doled out words of encouragement even to adults whom she saw were in pain. She was almost seven years of age when finally doctors said that she triumphed over cancer. Yes, I was overjoyed. And for the next two years, she was on close watch to see if there was any recurrence. Thankfully it is almost five years now that she is in remission. Here are 10 dos and don ts you should follow if you are undergoing chemotherapy.
Life as she knows it
I never told her that she suffered from cancer or any disease as such. But when she was around seven she just knew that she had cancer. One day she asked me, Am I free of cancer now? and with teary eyes, I said yes. Today she leads a normal life like any other 11-year-old girl, goes to school, loves literature and science and is an awesome dancer. I am proud of her. If you ask her what she wants to be when she grows up, she says, I want to be Madhuri Dixit because she is my mother s favourite actor. In fact, she had the chance to almost all the Bollywood stars who support and spread awareness of cancer. I try not to cry in front of her as it upsets her, but pray that she grows up strong and healthy to go out and conquer the world and live her dreams.
Image source: Shutterstock (Image for representational purpose only)
