“Zoya is so scared of hospitals that she lies and says it doesn’t hurt, hoping that we’ll take her home. But every time she hits her shoulder somewhere, it really hurts her. She is unable to sleep at night because of the pain. She keeps crying all the time that we’re here. I tell her she needs to get better so she can come home and go to school and I hope that is possible for my daughter” – Abida, Zoya’s mother

The last two months have been very scary for Zoya and her parents

Zoya had a knot on her right shoulder since last year. But it became very big in the last two months. By now it is larger than even her small thin shoulders and needs to be removed surgically. The doctors have diagnosed it as sarcoma or cancer of the soft tissues in her armpit region. It is a very serious condition that can get fatal quickly if left untreated. Luckily, the doctors say Zoya has a good chance of getting better completely.

“She had this for sometime, but in April, it started to swell up rapidly. We took her from hospital to hospital and suddenly we were told it was cancer. We had saved up some money for our daughters’ education, but we had to spend it all on treatment so far. We want to save our daughter’s life more than anything else.” – Hanif, Zoya’s father

Zoya’s father is a daily wage worker who does not have the means to pay for treatment

Hanif is a daily wage worker in Pandhurna, Madhya Pradesh. He works in fields and in construction sites to earn a living for himself and his family. Hanif and Abida had saved some money for their daughters Zeenat and Zoya’s education. But they have spent all that they had saved and borrowed from friends and family on Zoya’s cancer treatment so far.

“When he finds work every day, then he can earn up to Rs 1,700 per week. But otherwise, he usually gets Rs 1,000-1,200 per week. The cost of the surgery is Rs 10 lakhs. I want to save my daughter so much, but we simply don’t have the means to do so. My husband is also sick and gets dizzy and has fainting spells. But he has to work to somehow arrange for as much money as we can.” – Abida

Zoya does not understand what is happening and just wants to go home

Zoya is unable to sleep and play like before. She is scared of the nurses, injections, hospitals and what is happening to her. It is her parents prayer that somehow, she is cured of the cancer that has afflicted her and is able to join school and study. Curing her condition is possible but only if she gets the complete treatment she needs in time before her cancer spreads.