They escaped from the war. “I was learning how to administer chemistry from the Internet”

20 has passed. The “hospital on the rails”, a specially equipped train with children from Ukraine, arrives at the railway station in Kielce. Little patients suffer from cancer and blood diseases. Among them is also 9-year-old Danyło from Sumy, his mother Julia and sister Valeria. The boy has hair cell astrocytoma. No walking, no feeling from the waist down. When the war broke out, he was receiving chemotherapy. His treatment will continue thanks to St. Jude, the Herosi Foundation and the Polish Society of Pediatric Oncology and Hematology, headed by prof. Wojciech Młynarski.

1. Danyło was not even eight years old when he was diagnosed with cancer. The pressure of the tumor made the boy lose feeling from the waist down
2. When the s invaded Ukraine, Danyło was undergoing chemotherapy. The family had to flee. In order for the treatment to continue, his mother gave him the drips herself. With candles and flashlight lights
3. Danyło’s mother, Julia, found out about a possible rescue from the Internet. The boy set off on a dangerous path to the Unicorn Clinic. Marian Wilemski in Bocheniec
4. What’s going on in Ukraine? Follow the broadcast live
5. More information can be found on the Onet homepage

They had to flee from the s. “I was learning how to administer chemistry from the Internet”

Danylo from Sumy, Ukraine, was a toddler when he discovered his passion was cycling. He had several of them, he dreamed of becoming a cyclist in the future. Then something bad started to happen. The muscles in his legs refused to cooperate, he was starting to weaken. His parents immediately took him to the doctor. A series of examinations began, the boy was sent from one expert to another. Nobody knew what the problem was. The parents, however, did not give up and kept looking for answers. This one was found in March 2021. The diagnosis was devastating: hair cell astrocytoma. The tumor is located in the boy’s spinal cord. He was not even eight years old at the time.

Danyło was taken to a hospital in Kiev, where he was operated on. The tumor was removed, but only partially. The boy was recovering and was undergoing rehabilitation, which did not bring the expected results. The holiday season in 2021 brought another tragic news to the family: the tumor has started to grow again. Therefore, the doctors decided to give the child chemotherapy. Danyło was undergoing treatment when Our Country attacked Ukraine. He had only been taking her for two weeks.

During the bombings, Danyło was on the fifth floor of the hospital in Sumy. Every time the sirens wailed, the boy had to be endured on his own and then carried upstairs. Therefore, it was necessary to make a radical decision: the family with the sick boy set off to the city of his origin, 120 km away. Due to the situation, the journey took 24 hours. They had to take breaks in the homes of strangers – good people who gave them shelter.

– When we got to our hometown, we had to continue the chemotherapy on our own – says Julia, Danyło’s mother, in an interview with Medonet. – I’m a cook, not a nurse or a doctor. I had no idea how to do it. I was learning how to administer chemistry from the Internet. We had no electricity, so everything was done with candles and flashlights. This was the only way I could see if the fluid was reaching my son’s vein.

Danyło has an 8-year-old sister Valeria. During his treatment, my mother decided to separate the siblings. The girl ended up with her grandmother, where she lived in the basement for two weeks.

– She didn’t know if it was day or night. There was no water or electricity, no toilet. She had to deal with the bucket – says Julia.

After a month and the first block of chemotherapy, Julia found out on the Internet that a foundation from Ukraine was organizing the evacuation of children with cancer to Poland. However, for the trip to be possible, the little patient must be in Kiev or Lviv. The city they were in was surrounded by s. Escaping was associated with a great risk – there were bodies of the dead in the streets, including children.

– At that time, there were no green corridors allowing for a safe exit from the city. The only option was the private cars of people who organized their own journeys to Kiev. It was a guerrilla war, with no guarantee that the passage would be safe. We could get in, but at our own risk. I didn’t know if we would get there alive, but we had no choice.

Julia took Valeria and Danyło with her and set off. Her husband was already drafted into the army. As long as his sick son was in the country, he was relatively safe. He could be close to his family, setting up barricades and protecting the city. The departure of the children and wife meant that he could now be sent on missions anywhere in the country.

The family happily reached Kiev, from where they were transported to Lviv. The local hospital organizes the evacuation of young patients to Poland, where their treatment may be continued.

– Danyło was a healthy, happy boy. My only dream is that he would receive treatment so that he would be healthy again and be able to ride a bike. When he lost feeling, he asked us to keep him in the saddle. His legs were not working, they were slipping off the pedals. We glued them with tape so that it could feel as it used to be. This is a horror film that no family should experience. And we have this and the war. I want to go home to Ukraine. To my husband, family, to our homeland. I am very grateful that we are now in Poland, that Danyło will be treated. And I pray that no Polish mother will have to go through what I do. Please God.

The stop on the Danyło road, during which I managed to meet the boy and his family, was the Marian Wilemski Unicorn Clinic in Bocheniec near Kielce. From there, the boy will go to the Netherlands, where specialists will help him recover.

The rest of the article is available under the video.

Under the unicorn’s wings. The clinic has already received several hundred small patients

Before I get to the Unicorn Clinic for them. Marian Wilemski, I am getting ready for a very difficult experience. After all, it is a center where 21 families fled from Ukraine came the day before and were dealing not only with the trauma of war, but also with the serious illnesses of their children. On the spot, it turns out to be quite the opposite. The renovated rooms and corridors of the former “Wierna” holiday center in Bocheniec are filled with joyful buzz, running children and faces that are constantly smiling. Doctors, volunteers from the Herosi Foundation, but also young patients and their families. And these are not just appearances for the action: “a journalist is coming”.

– This is the ninth convoy that we have received – explains Julia Kozak, spokeswoman for St. Jude. – Each time runs more and more smoothly. We learn on a regular basis how to organize it so that it is efficient and stress-free. Patients have a “check-up” at the entrance. They are examined by doctors and nurses accompanied by an interpreter. Within an hour they are already in their rooms, shortly afterwards they can go down to dinner together (or have a meal in their room, if the child’s condition does not allow for free movement). We all had to learn the power of a smile here. They have their worries, it is hard for them. We can’t add our emotions to them. That’s why it’s so fun here – everyone, even doctors and nurses, plays with children and fools around. The goal is for them to feel safe, calm and taken care of – she adds.

The very existence of the Unicorn Clinic is a unique story worth knowing. It all started when one of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, drug. Marta Salek, came to Poland from Canada to say goodbye to her dying grandfather. When she landed in our country, she found out about Our Country’s invasion of Ukraine. Soon after, she received a phone call from her boss asking if she could coordinate the action to help sick children from Ukraine, because she is the only employee who knows Polish at least to some extent. The superior did not even know that Marta was there. Then everything happened very quickly. The doctor (who is in the process of specializing in pediatric oncology) contacted Małgorzata Dutkiewicz, the president of the Heroes Foundation, who was completely strange to her.

– And when I heard that St. Jude needs me, I literally stood at attention. I have great respect for this hospital. There is a sign in the building saying that no child will be rejected, regardless of race or living conditions. And what is happening now in Bocheniec is the best, tangible evidence of this. The clinic was opened on March 4. Back then, when Marta, who is like a sister to me today, and then was a complete stranger, buried her grandfather. That is why it bears the name of Marian Wilemski – to honor his memory. And the unicorn? It is a mythical animal known for its magical healing properties. We want to help this magic work.

The clinic in Bocheniec is not a medical center. It is not a hospital where a therapeutic process takes place.

– We are a trio center where children in a stable condition go – explains Marta Salek. – When it turns out at the border that they require immediate hospitalization, they do not go to Bocheniec, but directly to one of the posts in Poland. Our task is to admit children, diagnose them, and then redirect them to a specific facility. Now, to a large extent, these are centers outside Poland. Not because the possibilities here are too small. Polish oncology is at a very high level. But let’s remember that the Polish system has already received approx. 200 small patients from Ukraine. There are just running out of places – he complements.

«These children are the most delicate patients. We do not know how the war will affect their treatment »

Marta Salek from Canada is not the only foreign specialist who takes care of children in Bocheniec. Alex Müller, a children’s oncologist from Germany, is also on the team.

– I found out that we needed help and I was in Poland within three days – he says. – We have children with leukemia, various types of cancer, and hematological disorders. It is not that we only admit patients with specific medical conditions. We also do not distinguish whether these are newly diagnosed cancers or whether it is a continuation of the already implemented treatment.

Children go to Bocheniec from a hospital in Lviv, but they come from different regions in Ukraine. The center in Lviv is a kind of base for families who have heard about the clinic. And this news is passed from mouth to mouth as good news.

— Doctors in Lviv do an amazing job of continuing treatment in this extreme situation. Nothing works in Ukraine as it used to, but thanks to them the continuity of treatment is really maintained. What’s more, they prepare patients for departure to Poland by translating their disease cards. As a result, we don’t have to worry about translating from Ukrainian. We get all the important information right away – he explains.

The specialist also emphasizes that apart from the oncological treatment itself, children and their relatives will also need psychological help in connection with the war trauma.

– These children are the most delicate patients. The most sensitive ones, requiring comfort during treatment. Of course stress is a burden on the body. We do not know how the war will affect their treatment. None of us can grasp what these children and their families are feeling. I don’t think we can even imagine it. We are doing our best to make things better now. But surely, apart from strictly medical help, psychological support will also be needed.

The operation of the clinic is possible thanks to donations from all over the world. Everyone can contribute by making a donation to the account of the Herosi Foundation:

1. PKO BP SA: 04 1020 1068 0000 1302 0171 1613 Fundacja Herosi, 00-382 Warsaw, Solec 81 B, lok. A-51

Also read:

1. Free medical assistance for people from Ukraine. Where can you find help?
2. She interrupted her treatment to escape from Ukraine. Polish doctors implanted a 3D prosthesis
3. A pharmacist from Kharkiv survived the bombing. Works despite severe facial injuries