Even though she is only 10 years old, she is very conscious and mature. He knows he’s alive because he once made a conscious decision. He is called “the hero”. She would love to meet him, talk to him and thank him for being her “genetic twin”.
Hania is a smiling, resolute 10-year-old girl who dreams of becoming an actress, singer, meeting Ewa Farna, who is a huge fan, and appearing on breakfast TV.
Three years ago, at the age of seven, she developed leukemia. She spent a year in the hospital. When everyone thought that she was healthy, the disease returned, and with it the next months in the hematology ward – away from her friends and her beloved dog Florek. Then it turned out that the only chance for Hania was a bone marrow transplant from an unrelated donor.
Difficult hospital stay
The stay in the hospital was not easy for Hania and her mother. When asked who gave her strength, she replies with confidence and with a smile: – Mom, grandparents and Florek.
– During the illness, we tried to live as normally as possible. Of course, we spent most of our time in the hospital, and it was department IV that became our second home – says Joanna, Hania’s mother. – Every time we returned to the “four” and got a room assignment, we tried to “domesticate” this place as much as possible thanks to a few small details, such as a colorful napkin on the table, our own bedding, a stuffed animal – or even a few. During Christmas, during our stay in solitary confinement, we had our own artificial Christmas tree, lamps and a whole lot of Christmas decorations, which the doctors allowed us to make Hania’s difficult time. On Christmas Eve we were visited by our grandparents with a whole bunch of gifts, delicious dishes and a special guest: their beloved dog, Florek.
There is a compatible donor!
Waiting for a compatible donor was very difficult for Hania and her family, because it fell out when the whole world stopped for a moment. The pandemic, lockdown and closed borders certainly did not make this process easier. Hania’s mother remembers this moment in this way – Of course I was scared and I wondered if a genetic twin would be found and how soon it would be, but I did not allow gloomy thoughts. Fortunately for Hania, the compatible donor of the marrow she needed was found in time. It was His hematopoietic stem cells that helped the girl overcome the disease. Not everyone is lucky. Finding a matching donor is like winning the lottery, because the probability of finding a “genetic twin” is 1: 20, and when a patient has a rare genotype, it can be as low as 000 to several million.
Hania is very grateful to him because she knows that without him it would not have been possible to win against leukemia. She knows that the opponent was very difficult and the disease she suffered was fatal. When she returned home two weeks after the transplant, she wanted to send him a thank-you message as soon as possible. She did it through the DKMS Foundation:
Despite all the difficulties that the girl experienced during the treatment, she also sees positive aspects in the disease. She met many people during the fight against leukemia – she is grateful to them for being with her during this difficult time
– Due to the positive aspects of this situation, I met many people who were important to me and who helped me – including the DKMS Foundation, doctors, nurses, ladies, who organized various activities. I think that thanks to this the time in the hospital passed faster. I would like to thank everyone who made my way through this disease easier – adds Hania.
Conscious decision
The decision to join the database of potential bone marrow donors may one day give a chance for life to a person struggling with blood cancer – a chance that our Hania got. Statistically, every day four Donors from the DKMS Foundation make a donation to save the life of their “genetic twin” – a person they do not even know, but who are so genetically similar.
So far, over 9 people from the DKMS Foundation database have shared a part of themselves, thanks to which patients both in Poland and around the world have had a chance to recover. Blood cancer does not have a metric, so each of us – or our loved ones – may one day face such a difficult opponent, in defeating whom only an unrelated Bone Marrow Giver will be able to help. This is what the “Genes Connect Us” campaign is about. In this way, we want to convey that each of us can help, regardless of where we live, what we do, what gender or religion we are. The more people join the bone marrow donor database, the greater the chance that patients who need a transplant to live will find the right person. Hematopoietic stem cells are a drug that cannot be produced, and that each of us carries – and can share it – explains Ewa Magnucka-Bowkiewicz, president of the DKMS Foundation
After her recovery, Hania began to make her dreams come true. At the beginning, the actors, because she appeared in an advertisement for the social DKMS Foundation in which she shares her story and encourages registration in the donor database. She believes that this is a very important advertisement, because thanks to it people like her can get their chance for life.
The DKMS Foundation works to ensure that the story of each patient has a happy ending. To help patients for whom the only chance for health is “genetic twin”, it is enough to register as a potential bone marrow donor via the website: www.dkms.pl. It is a decision that could save someone’s life.