Vayda lives in West Ghana with her husband and their three sons, with her youngest being just six months old. When Vayda’s youngest child was born, she thought three-year-old Kelvin was seeking attention when continuously asking to be carried.
However, the family knew something was not right when Kelvin began to suffer from severe nose bleeds and took him to hospital. It was here that Vadya first heard her child may have developed leukaemia;
“I had heard of a lot of people developing cancer who never made it so when the doctor told us Kelvin had cancer I thought he was going to die. They referred us to Korle Bu Teaching Hospital for treatment and the doctors and nurses here are very good. They tended to us and carried out many tests. Every time they came to us, they told us he Kelvin would be ok.”
Whilst away from their homes and livelihoods, Vayda and her husband had to take turns in travelling long distances from hospital to home to care for their children;
“Sometimes we find it very difficult to buy drugs because they are very expensive and we simply don’t have the money for Kelvin’s treatment. Some of the doctors and nurses have supported us by giving us the medicine but apart from that, we don’t have anyone to ask for support.”
Even with the continuous financial and emotional strain on their family, Vayda manages to stay positive.
“He is very good at school; all the children call him ‘Professor’. Kelvin is dear to us and I know he will live and become a great person.”
