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“Our first child had just celebrated his 2nd birthday when we lost him. The shock of his death hadn’t worn off when our second child was born a year later. But he taught us how to smile and look forward to the future with hope, again. If we lose him too, we will not have a reason to continue living.” - Vivek Tiwari, father.
Vivek and Vandana’s two-year-old baby boy was found to suffer from thalassemia major, a rare blood disorder which causes the underproduction of haemoglobin in the body. These unassuming parents did not know for a long time that their child has the same disorder that killed his sibling earlier – they were not aware that it is an inherited condition due to their poor financial background and lack of education. But now, they are painfully aware that their child could face the same fate as his sibling if he does not get an urgent bone marrow transplant.
He may look ‘normal’, but he is far from it
Their child was fine until his first birthday. After that, he stopped growing, did not hit any developmental milestones and looked pale. He was also getting weaker with every passing day. He also started getting recurrent fevers after which doctors ordered a comprehensive blood test which revealed that he had thalassemia.“He has been undergoing regular blood transfusions since then. His supple skin has to be poked with needles every 15 days or so. He cries uncontrollably when that happens. But what to do? It is the only thing keeping him alive. It is difficult to believe that he undergoes so much suffering when you took one look at him…only we know the truth.” - Vandana, mother
‘We don’t have the means to even admit him to a hospital at this point’
Vandana and Vivek are so poor that they get their son’s monthly blood transfusions done at a government hospital in their hometown in Madhya Pradesh. They don’t have enough money to take him to private hospital for regular check-ups either. But local doctors insisted that they take him to Delhi for further treatment recently as his condition worsened – when regular fever and weakness followed blood transfusions. They had to beg and borrow money to take him to Delhi for a check-up, and that is where the doctor advised getting a bone marrow transplant immediately.“We are now waiting for help, for a miracle to happen. We have to get him admitted for pre-transplant procedures, but we cannot afford hospital admission at this point. I don’t think I have enough money to buy a admission card even. We are struggling to push through. Please help us.”- Vivek
With your help, these parents can save their only surviving child.
Identity of the child is protected in adherence to government guidelines.
