First Dengue Stole My Husband, Now Cancer Is Taking Away My Son!

My name is Sarika. Every fever brings back a nightmare that I cannot wake up from. Two years ago, my husband developed one, and within a week, dengue had taken him away forever. A month ago, my son also started burning with fever. My heart stopped, because I knew how dangerous a simple fever could become. I cannot bear the thought of losing my son too!

My husband was only a barber, working in someone else’s shop, but he carried our little family with his hard work. In 2023, one ordinary morning, he left for work as usual. By nightfall, he was unwell, and in just a few days the fever worsened. Doctors told us it was dengue, but we never imagined he would not survive. In less than a week, I lost him. My son was barely 5 years old when it happened. He kept asking me where his father had gone, but I did not know how to explain such a loss to him.

Since then, I have carried both of us forward, even when relatives doubted I could do it alone. They asked me, “Will you be able to raise him by yourself?” and reminded me again and again that I was a single mother with no one to depend on. I took a job in a small clothing shop, earning only twelve thousand a month. It was not much, but I managed school fees and food, always telling myself that I had to protect my son’s future no matter what.

Last month, fever struck again, this time in my child. I was terrified. I gave him medicines, hoping he would get better, but he did not. His condition only worsened, and the fear I felt was unbearable. I rushed him to the hospital for advanced tests, and my whole world collapsed when doctors said it was Acute Myeloid Leukemia. They told me chemotherapy had to start immediately, and that his only real chance at survival was a bone marrow transplant as soon as possible.

I quit my job because I could not leave his side, not even for a day. Every hour in the hospital is a struggle, not only to see him in pain but also to think about the money I do not have. I already lost my husband. I cannot lose my son too. Please help me give him the transplant that can save his life. Your support is the only way I can hold on to him.