Koushik looks up from his toys on the floor, waves his hand at his father and says "appa!" signalling him to come to play with him. Kannan smiles at him, but behind his calm exterior is a terrified father, scrambling to find a way to save Koushik from blood cancer. The past 10 months have been nothing short of tragic for the entire family, and now Kannan is almost always on the phone, trying to find a way to afford a bone marrow transplant for his son – the only way he can be completely cured of blood cancer.
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849404/production/images/uploader_images/1546849741858_1546849402.jpg)
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849452/production/images/uploader_images/1546849791437_1546849451.jpg)
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849494/production/images/uploader_images/1546849829832_1546849492.jpg)
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849533/production/images/uploader_images/1546849867672_1546849531.jpg)
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849404/production/images/uploader_images/1546849741858_1546849402.jpg)
“He was diagnosed when he was barely a year old. We have seen him go from completely healthy, to being so weak that he couldn’t even get up from his bed. With chemotherapy, he has started improving. Now he can sit for an hour and play, and sometimes even rides his cycle for a few minutes. But his fight with cancer continues. It can only end with a bone marrow transplant.” – Kannan, father
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849452/production/images/uploader_images/1546849791437_1546849451.jpg)
After spending lakhs on his treatment till now, Kannan finds himself helpless
Kannan works as a driver for a goods vehicle and earns Rs. 15,000 per month. However, in the past 10 months, he has spent nearly 15 lakhs on Koushik’s treatment. Despite their unstable financial condition, Kannan and Tara did everything in their power to continue their son’s chemotherapy.“We used our savings of 3 lakhs, sold the jewellery we had and borrowed from so many people. There have been days when I haven’t gone to work so that I could go to the people I borrowed from and tell them to give me more time to repay. Now to afford 25 lakhs more is just beyond our means.” - Kannan
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849494/production/images/uploader_images/1546849829832_1546849492.jpg)
His happy days seem like a distant dream
While Kannan works overtime, Tara spends the whole day with Koushik, watching over his every move. She has become even more protective of him, and Koushik rarely leaves her side. Her gentle back rubs and the stories she would tell him while getting chemotherapy is the only thing that would comfort him, even if for a minute, from the excruciating pain. Tara recalls how he was growing like a normal child before he fell sick.“He had started crawling and even calling out to us. We didn’t know anyone who had cancer, the disease was so alien to us. But now it has consumed our life. I start every morning with a prayer, and for nearly a year now, I’ve only begged God to save my son.” – Tara, mother
![](https://d2zcpk7yfyf2dq.cloudfront.net/milaap/image/upload/c_limit,w_750/v1546849533/production/images/uploader_images/1546849867672_1546849531.jpg)