Physical Health Ukraine Project #21329

Life-Saving Treatment for Kids in Ukraine

by Charitable Foundation Zaporuka

Project Report | Jan 19, 2023
Vika's Escape From Occupation to Save Her Arm

By Iana Dashkovska | Project Leader

Vika in Kyiv

Dear friends,

thank you for supporting seriously ill children who need treatment in wartime Ukraine! Your contributions help save lives.

Vika, the girl you see in the picture, is from Kherson Oblast. Her family didn’t have time to leave their village before the Russian invaders came. The occupation happened at once and they had to find a way to survive. They saw their neighbors disappear and were afraid of going out. When the Russians held a fake referendum, the soldiers entered the houses in the village and pointed machine guns at children, and then ordered their parents to "vote". Fortunately, Vika was not very traumatized by the occupation because she didn't understand fully what was going on and remembered it as "bad people who didn’t allow her to speak Ukrainian."

When Vika felt pain in the arm, and the local doctors suspected a tumor, the situation went from bad to worse. In their conditions, the doctors could only offer an amputation. The girl needed to leave the region to save her arm. The Russian occupiers told the family to take Russian passports, leave everything behind and go to Russia if they wanted their daughter to receive any treatment. The family didn’t want to be deported, that’s why they looked for volunteers who could organize their evacuation to the territory controlled by the Ukrainian government.

When Vika arrived in Kyiv with her mom, the doctors confirmed her diagnosis and scheduled surgery. The tumor had to be removed, and a bone substitute installed in its place. Fortunately, the tumor was benign, so the girl didn’t need prolonged chemotherapy. When Vika was at the hospital, she worried a lot about her father, sister, and brother who remained in occupation. Later on, they managed to escape too. The family still cannot return home as their village is heavily shelled by the Russians but they are happy because Vika is feeling well and they are all together.

In 2022, your contributions helped more than 600 children like Vika receive treatment in Ukraine. Thank you!

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Sep 30, 2022
Family United After Escaping From Occupation

By Iana Dashkovska | Project Leader

Bohdan

Dear friends,

thank you for standing with Ukraine and supporting our children!

Your contributions make it possible to support seriously ill children and their families who are in evacuation abroad and those who remain for treatment in Ukraine. In Kyiv and Lviv hospitals, more than half of the patients come from either the occupied territories, or the territories, where active hostilities occur. Here, they receive the therapies they need and psychological support to overcome anxieties and adapt to a new life situation.

2-year-old Bohdan, diagnosed with rhabdomyosarcoma, came to Lviv from occupied Melitopol, Zaporizhzhia Oblast. His parents noticed something wrong with the child’s eye after the beginning of Russia’s invasion. At that time, their town was already under occupation.

The father had to make six (!!!) attempts before he managed to go through the Russian checkpoint with the ill son. The mother was not allowed to go and had to remain in occupation. Firstly, they reached Zaporizhzhia, then Odesa, where Bohdan was urgently operated on to remove the tumor. The doctors managed to save his eye.

For chemotherapy, Bohdan and his father went to Lviv. There, the father took care of his son during the most challenging days of treatment. At the same time, he couldn’t stop worrying about his wife, who remained in occupation and could not often get in touch because of connection problems. The boy missed his mom very much, and the father tried hard to be as supportive as possible, hugging his boy all the time and cuddling with him.

Eventually, Bohdan’s mother managed to pass all the checkpoints and the family united. They received all the necessary support to be able to renew their lost documents and settle down in the Lviv Oblast. Now, between therapies, Bohdan can leave the hospital and have a rest staying with his parents. The family is happy to be together. For sure, that’s one of the things that makes the boy’s treatment successful. Your support is the other. Thank you so much for being there for us now!

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Jun 23, 2022
When Our Hospital Was Bombed

By Iana Dashkovska | Project Leader

Alla and Arina in safety

Dear friends,

thank you so much for supporting kids with cancer in Ukraine in time of war.

Little Arina is one of such children who can receive treatment in safety thanks to your support. Last September, Arina was diagnosed with nephroblastoma, kidney cancer. She was on treatment in Kharkiv, East of Ukraine, when the war started. Now she is in the Lviv Hospital with her mom Alla who tells their story:

"When I first heard the diagnosis, I had the feeling that I was falling into an abyss. Why my Arina? What did I do wrong? Now I understand that cancer can happen to anyone. And that no one is to blame for that. But in the first days, I couldn’t find any rest. To distract me, I was gluing wallpapers in the house for four days. It helped.

My husband and I decided that he and Arina would be in the hospital, and I would be at home with our children. We have a big family: the eldest son Artem is 13, Katya 9, Polina 6, Arina 3. The youngest, Oleksii, has recently turned one year old. We always wanted to have a big family together as happiness for us was to be surrounded by children.

The beginning of the war found us at home between therapies. In the morning my aunt from Kyiv called me: "Alla, the war has started. They’re bombing Kyiv, Kharkiv, all over Ukraine." I realized the impending catastrophe on the second day, when the hospital where Arina was being treated was bombed. My first thought: "Where will my daughter receive treatment?"

I called our doctor and he told us that we had to leave immediately. We started looking for transport. At the same time, a volunteer told us that it was possible to go to Poland for treatment. Without hesitation, I agreed. We began to pack our things quickly. My husband found a van and we left. I was praying all the way. We got safely to Lviv, from where we were supposed to go to Poland.

In Lviv, where we could breathe a sigh of relief, I was no longer so happy with the idea of going abroad. I didn’t feel very comfortable in an unfamiliar city, but at least I was in my home country. Who knows what could happen in Poland, where we would be among strangers and without speaking the language? What about my children? My husband? When I got to know that we could continue treatment in Lviv, the decision was final. We stayed in Ukraine.

Now Arina and I have a few days of rest between chemo cycles. My daughter is cheerful. I look at her and try to imitate her.

I really want to go home. For two months now, I have been dreaming of one thing – to go back and then cook a huge pot of homemade borscht for the whole family. That’s all, I don’t want anything else. Only peace, my family by my side, and borscht".

Your contributions make it possible to save kids’ lives in the most difficult time in Ukraine. Thank you so much for being there for us now!

In the Lviv Hospital

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