“From last year, only bad things have been happening for us. First, my wife began falling sick. The doctors found that her liver had become enlarged. They couldn’t understand what disease she had, but she was getting weaker with every passing day. Around that time, my son was diagnosed with cancer. Knowing this has made my wife’s condition worse. Now, both the people I love most in the world are suffering. My son will not survive without prolonged treatment, but I cannot afford it,”-Karthick, father of 3-year-old Kuntal.
They made the difficult decision to go to an unfamiliar city just to save their son
Karthick, his wife Dipankari and son Kuntal belong to Kolkata and had lived there all their life. They had not gone to another city, let alone State until Kuntal got sick last November with fever. The parents took him to many clinics and hospitals in their area, but nobody was able to ascertain the cause of his suffering. That is when they took the tough decision of taking him to Chennai. It was there that he was diagnosed with acute blood cancer.
“We can only speak Bangla and a little Hindi. We knew that going to a city that was completely alien to us – in terms of language and culture – was going to be difficult, but our neighbor had assured us that it is the best place for treatment. We still struggle with everyday things, like talking to the hospital staff and asking for directions from strangers, but at least our son is getting the care he deserves,”-Karthick.
‘I heard that aunty say I have cancer. What is that, Baba?’
Karthick and Dipankari had told little Kuntal that he has a small infection and that’s why he is in hospital. The child was never fully convinced, but they changed the topic whenever he probed much further. It was easy to sway his mind with questions about superheroes he loved – like Chota Bheem and Superman. But one day, the child overheard a discussion between other parents in the ward, the topic of which was his illness.
“He came running to us, tears streaming down his cheeks and asked ‘That aunty said I have cancer and that it’s bad. What is cancer?' I assured him that it’s just a small disease that all children get, but he did not seem to buy it. A fear has grown inside him since that day,”-Karthick.
This poor weaver needs your help to save his only son
Karthick used to make a living by weaving handloom sarees, earning Rs 6,000 per month. As he earned such a meagre salary, he never had any savings. When he decided to take his sick son to Chennai, he had to borrow Rs 9 lakhs to get his treatment started. That money is completely exhausted. Karthick is in debt and jobless now and has no way to continue his son’s treatment.“The room that we have rented near the hospital for Rs 700 a day is non-ac. As the Chennai heat is blazing on, my son finds it very difficult to sleep and keeps crying all night. But what can I do? I cannot afford to buy his medicines now, how will I afford an ac room? Please help me,”-Karthick.With your kind contribution, these parents can save their son before his condition worsens
Supporting document
The specifics of this case have been verified by the medical team at the concerned hospital. For any clarification on the treatment or associated costs, contact the campaign organizer or the medical team.
