Impact Report

Ana

Anna

Location: Hospital Materno Infantil, Asuncion, Paraguay

Out of the blue, in just two days, Ana went from perfect health, to total crisis and hospitalization. In lightening succession her symptoms moved from bruising to bleeding gums to extreme fatigue followed by incapacitating headaches, and finally culminating with high fever.

In precarious shape, Ana was immediately put in ICU where she was eventually stabilized. But the shocking news her devoted father received while he waited was a gut-wrenching blow. Her diagnosis was leukemia.

Cruelly, crisis quickly struck again. A completely unexpected and severe reaction to one of the medications left her reeling with terrifying hallucinations and temporary loss of speech.

She did not go home for forty-nine days.

Ana’s father, Alfredo, is disabled and walks only with the aid of crutches - but has a steady job. Even so, to pay for Ana’s care during this first, difficult time he has had to borrow money from “everywhere under the sun” to get by. Now he is financially at the end of the line.

After the private hospital quickly ate up the family’s funds, Ana was transferred to the public hospital, Maternal Infantile, in Asuncion. The National Cancer Coalition has a long-standing partnership with the hospital. NCC has donated thousands of rounds of chemotherapy medications to benefit low-income and underserved patients in Paraguay.

Alfredo emphatically believes that without them Ana would have died. He tells of six other patients he saw in other hospitals who died due to their inability to purchase medications.

Ana has responded well to her chemotherapy treatments. To see her now - after all the trauma she has suffered, is uplifting. She is very bright, in the seventh grade and wants to study hematology. A beautiful girl with glowing skin, big expressive eyes, and a wonderful smile, she is self confident and very polite. Her personality is sunny but with a calmness and depth that make her seem older. When she sees her family members in distress her response is, “Keep going and don’t worry about me. God will look after me.” She consistently tells her doctors that she is not afraid.

Because of the donated medicines Ana and her father are full of hope. She looks great in her bright red and white dress, with a cute red scarf covering her head. She says she is not even concerned about the loss of her hair - and why should she be, she couldn’t be a more perfect child.

CCRC - Leukemia - NCC Cares - Paraguay - Paraguay