"He would lose balance and trip over his own feet, because he would experience blackouts. There would be unexplained bruises on his body and his heart would beat at a faster pace than normal. Sometimes, he would tell us that he sees black spots in his vision and his head starts spinning. At first, I thought he was having some trouble with his vision and took him for an eye-check up... But when I learned the real cause of his problems, I couldn't believe it! How could a young child like him have such a grave disease?" - Sita Devi, mother 

He has a rare condition that has compromised his immunity

11-year old Nishant has always been an active child, and it was quite natural for his parents to think his frequent bruising and fatigue were from playing too much. Whenever he used to complain of headaches and dizziness, they assumed it would be due to change in his vision. It was only when he had frequent fevers and his heartbeat turned erratic, that his parents got concerned.

A local doctor they consulted ran a few tests, and immediately informed them to take Nishant to a bigger hospital in the city because he had aplastic anaemia. It is a very rare condition where the body stops producing enough blood cells and attacks itself. Nishant's bone marrow is not functioning properly and his only option at a cure is an urgent bone marrow transplant.

Without treatment, Nishant is at 70 percent risk of death

Mahavir has spent close to INR 7 lakhs on Nishant's treatment and hospital stay, until now. He went to great lengths to arrange this amount, even pulling out his other children from school so he could put that money into saving his youngest son's life.

"I'm 62 years old now and my age is catching up to me - such strenuous farming work takes a toll on my health. Despite that, I have to work in the fields so that I can feed my family of 7. We hardly visit a doctor when we fall sick as that would mean spending 2-3 days of our income. If Nishant's condition is left untreated, the chances of him losing his life is 70 percent. We have been struggling for 3 months just to afford his daily medicines. In this state, how can we arrange 15 lakhs for his transplant?" - Mahavir, father 

With no funds in hand for her son's treatment, this mother is praying for a miracle

With hypertension running rampant in his family, Nishant's diagnosis and lack of funds for his treatment is making his aged parents endure extreme stress and misery.

"We came here thinking we will return to Bihar in a day or two after showing him to a doctor and taking his medicines. But it's been 3 months since we left Kolkata, and his condition isn't any better. This deadly disease has caused my son's body to attack itself. I'm not literate enough where I can understand all these medical terms that the doctors use, but I'm a mother, and seeing my child so drained out and pale, makes my heart ache. I just want to take my son back home healthy." - Lalita Devi, mother

After a long break due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 11-year old Nishant was gearing up to meet all his friends at school. Little did he know that instead of school, he would be spending his coming months confined to a hospital bed. If they delay his transplant any longer, a lot of complications may arise and this little boy may not survive. Only with your support, can these parents even hope to arrange 15 lakhs to keep their son's treatment going.