RazanA young patient at CCHE named Razan traveled to Egypt from Saudi Arabia with her mother last year. At just the tender age of 12, Razan was diagnosed with non-Hodgekin Lymphoma (NHL) two years ago. Her voyage to Egypt, her parents homeland, was determined by the reputation of Children’s Cancer Hospital Egypt 57357 (CCHE) as the facility that would provide Razan with the best treatment possible, at no cost to her parents.

As she began to lose her hair during her chemotherapy treatment, Razan began to feel even more self-conscious than usual. Her emotional state was compounded by the absence of not only her friends but also of her father, who had to stay in Saudi Arabia to work. Her loneliness and despair were so extreme that she went so far as to attempt to run away from CCHE.

After this event Razan had regular visits with the CCHE psychiatrist, Dr. Mohamed El Shami, as well as the team of social workers. Their efforts, in conjunction with complete devotion and care from her mother, helped Razan find the strength to shift her attitude, converting her pain into strength and her sadness into success.

Her success is exemplified not only by her recovery from cancer, as her physician Dr. Emad Moussa stated, but also by her perserverance to study and complete her final exams while undergoing treatment at the hospital. Despite her hardships, Razan celebrated her healthy body as well as having passed all of her subjects and graduated from primary school.

Today Razan is happy and full of life. She pays visits to CCHE from time to time for her checkups. When asked what she learned from her treatment, she replied, with a twinkle in her eye, “”I learned that I will eat a lot of chocolate, as I was forbidden to eat it throughout the treatment period”. Razan has rediscovered her zeal for life.

Equally at ease are her parents – Razan’s mother is grateful and confident in her daughter’s strength, saying she was thankful for the excellent quality care her daughter has received at 57357. ”Merely giving thanks is just not enough; everything in [CCHE] is perfect, from the housekeeping to the physicians, they all work together so well to comfort us and cure our children”.

Since the publication of this webpost, Razan has made her return to Saudi Arabia, reunited with her family and enjoying the next phase of her life.

 

 

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