Boy needs 250,000 euros for cancer therapy

Fundraiser for little boys: 250,000 euros for cancer therapy

04/19/2014

Since there is no help for little Danylo in his native Ukraine, his mother came to Germany with him. The 20-month-old boy is suffering from a so-called neuroblastoma. This malignant tumor has already metastasized. For the 250,000 euros expensive treatment is now called to donations.

In his native Ukraine there is no help for the little boy
On New Year's Eve last year, Julia Shkurka and her son Danylo went to hospital for the first time in their home country of Ukraine. The doctors there first suspected a gastrointestinal infection before they made the correct diagnosis. The 20-month-old boy is suffering from a so-called neuroblastoma. The malignant tumor is located in the nerve tissue on both sides of the spine and has already metastasized. Since the doctors in Ukraine saw no way to treat the little patient, his mother brought him to Germany and found help in the University Hospital in Düsseldorf.

250,000 euros for the life-saving therapy
Together with his mother, Danylo was admitted to the Düsseldorf clinic at the end of March. There, the doctors want to save the boy now with a high-dose chemo and a stem cell transplant. However, the treatment is expensive: 250,000 euros to cost the life-saving therapy. Deputy Director of the Department of Pediatric Oncology, Hematology and Clinical Immunology, Professor Roland Meisel said: „In a high-dose therapy, the chemo is so strong that the entire bone marrow is destroyed. Because this is acutely life-threatening, the patient's own blood stem cells are first taken, which are then used again after the therapy.“ This costly method for removal and storage of the cells drives the cost of the therapy in the air.

Costs for the family are priceless
However, the costs, which are priceless for the small family, are not covered by the insurance because the boy does not come from any EU country. Therefore, the Children's Hospital wants to fund the therapy through donations. „EU countries often have an agreement that health insurance companies take over treatments that their own country does not offer. But Ukraine is not a member of the EU“, explained Meisel. The doctor is sure that Danylo has a realistic chance of getting completely well if he can do the therapy. „Otherwise, this child dies.“ If you would like to donate for little Danlyo, you can contact the parents' initiative Kinderkrebsklinik on 0211/279998.

Parents are hopeful
Without the conventional chemotherapy that has already begun, Danylo may no longer be alive. But these „normal“ Therapy can not destroy advanced cancer. „Since the tumor is very deep in his body, the symptoms of the already advanced disease showed up late“, so meisel. Danylo's father Stanislas could not travel to Dusseldorf because he had to earn money for the treatment. He and his wife Julia are hopeful, so Danylo's mother said: „I am convinced that the treatment will be very grateful for the help we receive here.“ Also the aid organization „A heart for children“ calls for donations. Who wants to donate for the therapy of the little boy, this under the keyword „Danlyo“ Do: Donation account: A heart for children, Deutsche Bank Hamburg, account number 0676767, bank code 20070024. (ad)