Mohd Salman here. I never thought life would slow down like this. Some days feel like I’m watching the world move while we stay stuck in one hospital room at Fortis Memorial Research Institute, Gurugram. And in the middle of it all is my wife, Israt, 28, trying to hold on.
She was first diagnosed with blood cancer years ago. It changed from CML to AML, and that shift was like the ground opening under our feet. She went through rounds of chemo. Then the bone marrow transplant. We thought that was the final climb.
But after the transplant came something we didn’t see coming.
GVHD. Doctors call it Graft Versus Host Disease. Sounds complicated, but to me it means one thing. Her own new cells are fighting her body. Attacking her liver. Her skin. Her eyes. Her lungs. Her stomach. Her whole being.
She hasn’t eaten solid food for months. Her mouth and stomach have ulcers full of pus. Her skin burns and blisters. She can’t open her eyes without pain. She tries to stand, but her legs shake. She’s down to 35 kilos now. Some days she can’t walk from the bed to the bathroom. I lift her. I hold her hands so she doesn’t fall. She gets tired even while breathing.
Her blood counts stay low, WBC, haemoglobin, platelets… all dropping. Doctors say her body has no shield left. Steroids were given to calm the GVHD, but her condition kept slipping.
I sold our house. Our gold. Borrowed from every relative I had the strength to ask. My work as a welding labourer barely keeps us afloat. Still, I tell her every night, “You’re not alone. I’m here.” She squeezes my hand with whatever strength she has.
The doctors now say she urgently needs a drug from abroad. Without it, this GVHD will keep tearing her down. With it, she gets a chance. A real one.
I’m worried. I’m exhausted. But I’m not giving up on her. She wants one thing when she gets better: to walk to our daughter on her own, hold her, cook for her, just be her mother again.
If you can help us reach that dream, even a little, it means more than I can say.
How to help:
Donate: Click on the ‘Donate Now’ button and contribute to Israt’s treatment.
Share: Share Israt’s story with your friends and family and support further.
यहाँ मोहम्मद सलमान हैं। मैंने कभी नहीं सोचा था कि ज़िंदगी इस कदर धीमी पड़ जाएगी। कुछ दिन तो ऐसा लगता है जैसे मैं दुनिया को हिलते हुए देख रहा हूँ, जबकि हम गुरुग्राम के फोर्टिस मेमोरियल रिसर्च इंस्टीट्यूट के एक अस्पताल के कमरे में बंद हैं। और इन सबके बीच मेरी पत्नी, 28 वर्षीय इसरत, खुद को संभालने की कोशिश कर रही है।
उसे सालों पहले पहली बार ब्लड कैंसर का पता चला था। यह सीएमएल से एएमएल में बदल गया, और यह बदलाव हमारे पैरों तले ज़मीन खिसकने जैसा था। उसकी कीमोथेरेपी के कई दौर हुए। फिर बोन मैरो ट्रांसप्लांट। हमें लगा कि यही आखिरी चढ़ाई है।
लेकिन ट्रांसप्लांट के बाद कुछ अप्रत्याशित हुआ।
जीवीएचडी। डॉक्टर इसे ग्राफ्ट वर्सेस होस्ट डिजीज कहते हैं। सुनने में जटिल लगता है, लेकिन मेरे लिए इसका एक ही मतलब है। उसकी अपनी नई कोशिकाएँ उसके शरीर से लड़ रही हैं। उसके लीवर पर, उसकी त्वचा पर, उसकी आँखों पर, उसके फेफड़ों पर, उसके पेट पर। उसके पूरे अस्तित्व पर हमला कर रही हैं।
The goal amount of the campaign may be higher than the attached estimates to address and aid the post-hospitalization expenses/contingencies including but not limited to prolonged medication, diagnostics, rehabilitation therapies, and follow-up doctor visits/consultations which vary from disease to disease.