Cancer is among the most fearsome diseases known to mankind. It is a broad term and is used to refer to a type of disease caused by the abnormal growth of defective cells anywhere in the body.
Cancer in adults vs children:
Cancer is common in adults and children alike. However, their nature is not the same. The type, symptoms, reasons, the extent to which cancer can spread in the body, and how it can be treated vary greatly for both.

Treating children with cancer requires much more care and skill, as the methods and medicines used to treat cancer do not only act on the affected part but also the whole body. So, there could be many side effects as well. On the other hand, children have stronger immunity than adults, and there is a lesser chance of comorbidity in them.
In honour of Childhood Cancer Awareness Month, we’d like to tell you the story of Kate (now 19), who was diagnosed with (ALL) Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia when she was five years old. How she was diagnosed, treated, recovered and now enjoys living a normal, healthy life will be told, in the hope it helps and encourages little children out there who are battling some form of cancer. It will also help parents of such children and other cancer research institutes in advancing their treatment techniques.

Recount of Kate’s Cancer Journey – Before the diagnosis

Kate is the firstborn child of her parents, mother Sarah and father Tim. Before she was diagnosed with cancer as a child, they were like a typical happy family who was relishing life to the fullest with their firstborn. Kate was an energetic, fun-loving and usually happy, giggly baby. She used to enjoy trips to parks, riding in swings, and walking outside with the family dog. By the time she was prepared and ready to go to kindergarten, she had got ill.

Kate’s Symptoms

It all started when Kate caught the flu during the winter season (2006). She was four years old by then. At that time, it looked quite normal, and she was taken to a local doctor to get it treated. For the time being, it got suppressed, but it kept coming back every few weeks. At the end of winter, she got another major attack and got a bit wheezy. Still, it wasn’t enough for her parents to worry much because they just thought that the seasonal changes and harsh weather were causing it. It wasn’t until her mother started noticing the paleness and general lethargy, which were normally not her traits, that she started worrying. By the end of winter, she got quite weak, and her parents got seriously concerned about her ongoing chest infection. Her mother also noticed swelling and redness of the skin just around her back and was sure that something was not right. She was taken to the family doctor again, who conducted a physical test and a blood test. After that, he advised them to go to the children’s hospital emergency immediately. Things took a dramatic turn.

Diagnosis

A few hours later, she was at the pediatric hospital, lying on the bed with doctors conducting tests and asking questions about her general well being and her history of illness. Kate’s parents recounted all and, after viewing the reports, declared that she was suffering from some type of leukaemia as her reports showed an abnormal increase in her white blood cells. Later, she was taken for lumbar puncture and bone marrow aspirate that confirmed the presence of acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.

Aftermaths of the Diagnosis

Things took a dramatic turn right after that. The news hit hard. The parents were grieved. Her mother just cried pretty much the whole week after that. Never in their wildest dream had they thought of such a thing that could happen to their perfectly healthy-looking daughter before the illness. The thought of her missing a school year, all the gruelling treatment that would be required, and whether or not she would fully recover was heart-breaking and took a mental toll on her parents. Nevertheless, they found comfort in each other’s company and the doctors’ advice and braced themselves for whatever might come for the sake of their daughter.

Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia

Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia or acute lymphocytic leukaemia is a type of cancer that affects the white blood cells of the body. White blood cells are a significant part of a person’s immunity system. They defend the body from outside infections and help protect it from diseases. Patients with lymphoblastic leukaemia tend to have an excess of immature white blood cells that outgrow the number of healthy white blood cells of the body. As a result, the body is left with few healthy white blood cells to protect it, and it becomes vulnerable to diseases and infections. Minor infections become dangerous, and the body has a hard time fighting infection.
How common is it to have (ALL) in children?
Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia is the most common existing type of cancer among children. The symptoms mostly occur between three to five (slightly less or more) years of age. It is slightly more common among boys than girls. However, it is curable in most cases and about 90% of those who suffer from acute lymphoblastic leukaemia recover. Follow up appointments and check-ups are conducted for many years to come to rule out the chances of a return or any side effects. Children with cancer are considered fully cured after the completion of ten years in remission.

Kate’s Treatment

Soon after the diagnosis, the doctors wanted to start the treatment right away. A port was inserted into Kate’s chest, and she was taken to emergency chemotherapy the same night. Doctors didn’t want to delay the process even to the weekend (which was a good thing) because they were worried cancer might spread to other places as well. Thankfully, it did not! Initially, she needed to have two rounds of chemotherapy every week and was made to stay in the hospital to see how her body responded to these sessions. All went well except that after a few more sessions, her port and the hole in which it was inserted got badly infected. She also started getting high fevers from the infection and treatment. Her port was removed from there and inserted again near to the shoulder. She was kept in isolation, and the poor thing was given anaesthesia every time her wound needed dressing! The time was hard, and she still gives shudders to the mother as she recounts this story.
Nonetheless, the sessions continued, and things started to get better. Her white blood cell counts started getting better. The consolidation (to get the body rid of any remaining defective cells) sessions continued until all the cancerous cells were removed. Her body was put into remission (killing leukemic cells and returning to a normal white blood count) just a few weeks after the treatment.

Now

The follow-up appointments continued for many years after the incident, and after ten full years of remission, Kate was declared completely cured. She is 19 years of age now and the eldest sibling of a younger brother and a sister. She has recently completed high school and is helping raise money for children’s cancer charity for the same paediatric hospital treatment.