The Hematology Department of ‘Okhmatdyt’ is the premiere Hematology treatment center for children with the most complicated cases of leucosis and hematological disorders in the Ukraine. The Department houses a pediatric bone marrow transplant center, which we were not allowed to visit due to the high risk of infection. We visited the third floor where children with leukemia were treated.
Below you see images of Danil, age 3, who is being treated for early stages of leucosis. He had already undergone 2 months of treatment and had another 8 months ahead of him. During our visit we talked to both his mom and his grandmother, both of whom visit Danil daily before, during and after his treatment sessions.
Vitaly, age 7, was at the Okhmatdyt for treatment of leukemia. He had just resumed chemotherapy treatment as he had relapsed recently. Initially, he had been treated at the Hematology Department 3 years ago.
Of all the hospitals and orphanages that I visited, the children at the Hematology Department at the Okhmatdyt affected me the most. In all other places we met kids with the most indescribable ailments and illnesses, but their spirits were always high and their zest for life unrattled. They seemed strong and determined to overcome their sickness, unwavering in their resolve to live and get well.
However, the children I met on the leukemia floor had been severely weakened by their affliction, their immune systems and energy tanks depleted by the disease. Their skin was pale, their skin tone almost see-through. They seemed to weak to fight, their spirit broken.
