“It has almost been a month since her chemotherapy has started, and with every passing day, my pocket is also becoming lighter. Now we have reached a point where my wife and I can afford to eat only one meal in order to afford to buy 3 meals for our daughter. We are starving and also running out of money to save her,”-Kunju Bihari Majhi, father.

12-year-old Naina, the daughter of a poor laborer couple from a remote village called Kalahandi in Orissa has been diagnosed with acute blood cancer. Her parents, who could never afford to take her even to the nearest village were forced to take her to a good hospital in Bhubaneshwar after being turned down by doctors in their village. Without money and nobody to help them, they are struggling in a strange city to save her.  

Completely engrossed in studies at boarding school, Naina did not inform her parents of her fever at first

From the first time she picked up a book to scribble in at age 3 to recently getting admission in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Kalahandi - in class 6, Naina has always been passionate about studies. She was independent enough to go to boarding school at just 11 years of age. Last month, she began suffering from recurrent high fevers, but did not inform the warden or her parents as she was too engrossed in her studies. Sadly, it only made her sicker and ended in a deadly diagnosis.

“We were so proud of our child – no child in our village had passed the Navodaya entrance exam before Naina. She had just started going to school there when she was diagnosed with blood cancer. Even while burning with fever, my child only kept worrying about her missed classes,”-Padmavati, mother

‘We want to save her, but we don’t even have money for food’

Naina’s parents Kunju and Padmavati work as labors on other’s farms for daily wages. On the days that they get work, Kunju earns Rs 200 while Padmavati earns just Rs 100. Unfortunately, work is not available every day and the couple really struggles to make ends meet. They were thrilled when Naina got free admission in a good school recently as they would not have been able to afford her education otherwise. But now, their sweet child is suffering from deadly cancer and they have no way to save her.

“I already spent Rs 50,000 of borrowed money on her treatment so far. Now we are left with no money for even meals. But we are making sure our child eats properly. But the money that I have currently can get over soon. I need Rs 10 lakhs for Naina’s treatment – how will I arrange it now?”-Kunju, father

With your kind contribution, these parents will be able to save their bright daughter from cancer