KYIV, Ukraine (National Times) The National Cancer Institute in Kyiv was busier than usual after a Russian missile struck Ukraine\u2019s largest children\u2019s hospital this week, forcing the evacuation of dozens of its young patients battling cancer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Russia\u2019s heaviest bombardment of the Ukrainian capital in four months severely damaged Okhmatdyt Children\u2019s Hospital on Monday, terrorizing families and severely impacting their children already battling life-threatening diseases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now, some families face a dilemma of where to continue their children\u2019s treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Oksana Halak only learned about her 2-year-old son Dmytro\u2019s diagnosis \u2014 acute lymphoblastic leukemia \u2014 at the beginning of June. She immediately decided to have him treated at Okhmatdyt, \u201cbecause it is one of the best hospitals in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She and Dmytro were in the hospital for his treatment when sirens blared across the city. They couldn\u2019t run to the shelter as the little boy was on an IV. \u201cIt is vitally important not to interrupt these IVs,\u201d Halak said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
After the first explosions, nurses helped move them to another room without windows, which was safer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe felt a powerful blast wave. We felt the room shaking and the lights went out,\u201d she recalled. \u201cWe understood that it was nearby, but we didn\u2019t think it was at Okhmatdyt.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Shortly after that, they were evacuated to the National Cancer Institute, and now Dmytro is one of 31 patients who, amid a difficult fight with cancer, have to adapt to a new hospital. With their arrival, the number of children being treated for cancer there has doubled.
Dmytro and the other patients were offered evacuation to hospitals abroad, and Halak wants his further treatment to be in Germany.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe understand that with our situation, we cannot receive the help we should be getting, and we are forced to apply for evacuation abroad,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other hospitals in the city that took in children for treatment faced a similar overcrowding situation after the shutdown of Okhmatdyt, where hundreds of children were being treated at the time of the attack.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe destroyed Okhmatdyt is the pain of the entire nation,\u201d said the director general of the National Cancer Institute, Olena Yefimenko.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Almost immediately after the attack, messages began circulating on social media networks to raise money for the hospital\u2019s restoration. Many parents whose children were treated there wrote messages of gratitude, saying their children survived due to the hospital\u2019s care despite difficult diagnoses. In just three days, Ukrainians and private businesses raised more than $7.3 million through the national fundraising platform UNITED24.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Work to rebuild the hospital is already underway. Okhmatdyt doctors balance their duties treating their young evacuated patients while working to get the children\u2019s hospital reopened. But even with resources and determination, that may take months.
Even so, Yuliia Vasylenko has already decided that her 11-year-old son, Denys, will remain in Kyiv for his cancer treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The day of the attack the boy, diagnosed with multiple spinal cord tumors, was supposed to start chemotherapy. The strike delayed his treatment indefinitely, and Denys has to undergo additional examinations and tests, his mother said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Denys was very scared during the strike, said his mother as she wheeled him around the National Cancer Institute in a wheelchair.
\u201cThe last days felt like an eternity,\u201d she said. Only now are they slowly recovering from the stress.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cIf we go somewhere, with our diagnosis, we would have to retake all the tests from the beginning,\u201d she said, adding that this could take three to four months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cAnd we don\u2019t know if we have that time,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KYIV, Ukraine (National Times) The National Cancer Institute in Kyiv was busier than usual after a Russian missile struck Ukraine\u2019s largest children\u2019s hospital this week, forcing the evacuation of dozens of its young patients battling cancer. Russia\u2019s heaviest bombardment of the Ukrainian capital in four months severely damaged Okhmatdyt Children\u2019s Hospital on Monday, terrorizing families […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":85460,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-85459","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n