Cancer Kids Ukraine

We finally got some news about Nastya Olkhovskaya. Just to remind you, Nastya’s mother, Marina,took her to Belarus (Minsk) for examination and treatment. Marina called us today to say that Nastya had a number of different analyses done. The most important analysis is a genetic test. It will show whether Nastya has the seventh (chimeric) chromosome or not. If she does, it will mean that Nastya most likely has a chronic myelomonocytic leukemia. If not, then she has something else. However, nobody knows what’s wrong with her. The results of the tests will be ready in two weeks. Nastya doesn’t feel well. She has fever all the time and receives the glucose and antibiotics.

The only good thing is that the content of blasts in her blood decreased by itself (without chemotherapy drugs) and is normal now. The doctors in Belarus believe Nastya will need an allogenic bone marrow transplant anyway. But they will try to make her wait for two more years until she grows up a little bit. Meanwhile, they intend to give her the supportive chemotherapy drugs. The question is what effects the chemotherapy drugs will have on Nastya, if she takes them for such a long period of time. Marina has already spent all the money she was able to raise: she paid $5,000 to the clinic on arrival. Another $5,000 she borrowed from the parents of Katya Mulyk, who is also undergoing treatment at the same clinic. Nastya needs your support. She has been moving from one clinic to another, from one city to another, from one country to another for several months. However, the doctors have not been able to diagnoze her as yet.