This 13-Year-Old Has A Disease Worse Than Cancer And Needs | Milaap
This 13-Year-Old Has A Disease Worse Than Cancer And Needs Urgent Help
  • B

    Created by

    Basanagoud
  • SS

    This fundraiser will benefit

    Santosh Satish

    from Bommasandra, Karnataka

Santosh is mature beyond his years. When his parents, Satish and Parvathi, find it difficult to converse with the doctor, Santosh (13) takes over, even asking questions about his own treatment. Santosh is too young to realise that he may be facing death. Unfortunately for him, blurred vision, bleeding in his gums and fatigue have been a part of his life for 2 years now. With each passing day, Santosh is getting weaker because of this deadly blood disorder that’s more debilitating than cancer.


Santosh needs blood every 15 days, without which his eyesight is dimmed, and his gums start bleeding uncontrollably

One day, he was sent back home from school because he couldn’t read the board. We took him for an eye checkup but never expected what would follow. We found out our boy was fighting a fatal disease. Due to the lack of blood circulation in his brain, he can’t read anything when his blood counts goes low. He needs new blood every 15 days, after which, he’s fine for a week and then goes back to being sick. It’s a never-ending, vicious cycle.



Santosh has aplastic anaemia, a condition in which his body can’t produce new blood cells. People with low platelet counts tend to bruise and bleed easily, and the bleeding is often hard to stop. For two years now, he has been living on blood transfusions and medication. Sadly, his condition has only gotten worse over the years. Now, only a bone marrow transplant can put an end to his suffering.


Santosh has bravely endured the pain of his disease, but he knows that he won’t make it without treatment

“I’m only a labourer, I didn’t get a chance to finish studying, but I want both my sons to have a chance of a good future. Santosh is such a bright boy. When he speaks English, I feel so proud. I never thought that he would be forced to grow up so much so soon. He understands everything that’s happening to him. He knows that without treatment, he won’t make it. These are his years to learn and play. No child should have to understand death this early."

The blood transfusions aren’t enough to keep Santosh alive anymore

We put everything we had into the two years of his treatment, but it didn’t work. Now he can’t survive on blood transfusions anymore. The doctors say he needs a bone marrow transplant to be cured. When you see him, you can’t tell that there’s something wrong with him, but reality hits us every week when his platelet count goes low and his gums start bleeding, his fight begins again.”



Satish and Parvathi are both daily-wage labourers. They barely earn 200 a day and can’t afford to give their son the life-saving bone marrow transplant. On some days, even a blood test becomes a difficult task. Their son is slipping away from them, and they can do nothing but watch him struggle.


How You Can Help

Santosh’s body can’t produce new blood and only a bone marrow transplant can save his life. Two years of blood transfusions have kept Santosh alive, but it hasn’t improved his condition. He needs the transplant soon, and his parents are finding it extremely difficult to get by. Santosh is their pride and joy, they need your help to save his life.

Your support will save Santosh’s life.

Read More

Know someone in need of funds? Refer to us
support