Fundraising for Charmaine
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Mon, Jun 15, 2009 The New Paper
'Yes mum, I'll fight monster'
By Shree Ann Mathavan
LIKE any kid, little Charmaine Lim loves singing, dancing and cuddling up to her mother. But unlike most carefree 4-year-olds, Charmaine has stage four cancer and is fighting for her life. A rib cage that appeared to be higher on one side first alerted her mother, Ms Cynthia Lim, 29, that something wasn't quite right with her daughter. A 12cm tumour was found growing in Charmaine's right adrenal gland, which is located above the kidney. The diagnosis came after several blood tests and scans at the KK Women's and Children's Hospital (KKH) in February. The high-risk cancer was found to have spread to her bone marrow and bones. Charmaine was diagnosed with stage four neuroblastoma, a kind of cancer that occurs in infants and kids. This form of cancer usually arises in the adrenal glands or in the nervous system related to the adrenal glands. Charmaine is undergoing treatment at the National University Hospital (NUH). So far she has undergone four rounds of chemotherapy with surgery to remove the tumour coming up next week. And if she continues with her treatment in Singapore, she will also undergo a bone marrow transplant after her fifth round of chemotherapy next month. There is an alternative form of treatment offered in the US, but it is not certain whether Charmaine will be able to get it.
Nausea
Meanwhile, she has to grapple with difficult lifestyle changes. She no longer mixes freely with other kids in the playground or attends nursery school, because her lowered immunity puts her at high risk of falling ill. The chemotherapy has caused her once lush locks to fall out and her skin to darken. In addition, she suffers from bouts of nausea and vomiting. Stage four neuroblastoma among children is rare, but Charmaine is not the youngest such patient in Singapore. Dr Chan Mei Yoke, senior consultant of haematology and oncology services at KKH, said one baby had stage 4S neuroblastoma when it was born at the hospital a few years ago. The 4S category refers specifically to newborns with the condition. She said there are about three to six new neuroblastoma cases a year in Singapore. 'This makes up roughly 6 per cent of all childhood cancers,' she said. 'Leukaemia is the most common form of cancer in children here.' An NUH spokesman said its youngest patient is a 4-month old baby with brain tumour. 'Neuroblastoma is a very rare cancer. Leukaemia and brain tumours are the top two childhood cancers.' The spokesman added that while neuroblastoma is rare, stage four is unfortunately common in those that suffer from this form of cancer. She noted: 'It occurs about 41 per cent of the time.' Stage 4S, which occurs in infants, in comparison, occurs in about six per cent of all kids with neuroblastoma, she said. The condition is usually diagnosed by the age of 5 and hardly occurs after the age of 10, said the spokesman. Despite the treatments, the odds of Charmaine's survival stands at a slim 20 per cent, according to her medical report. Now her mother is 'hoping against hope' to boost her daughter's chances of survival. Ms Lim is pinning her hopes on the alternative treatment called 3F8, which Charmaine's NUH medical report noted, could help boost her chances of survival to as much as 40 to 50 per cent. But this treatment is available only at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York. It's also very costly - US$350,000, which is slightly more than $500,000. That's a hefty sum for Ms Lim, a divorcee who quit her project management job at a water treatment company to look after her daughter full-time. She is barely coping with the NUH medical bills which is estimated at about $80,000. Next month or in August, Charmaine would either have to proceed with the bone marrow transplant locally or head overseas for several doses of the 3F8 drug. Ms Lim is hoping to raise the $500,000 by then and is seeking help. Her strong desire to save her daughter at all costs has changed her, she said. 'In the past I was more proud. I used to think that I could solve any problem on my own, but now I'm literally begging people to help me,' Ms Lim said. She wants to do everything possible to keep her daughter alive. Most of all, she encourages Charmaine to fight on. Perhaps Charmaine's fighting spirit is best seen when her mother talks about the 'monster' inside her.
She always replies: 'Yes, I will fight with the monster.'
http://ourfeistyprincess.blogspot.com/
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In order for us to help Charmaine fight this cancer battle, we require our friends and people who know us to help raise funds for the substantial medical expenses and the expensive treatments which would last more than a year. We would also appreciate if you wish to make alternative contribution arrangements.
If you are keen in donating or helping Cynthia and her family in any way:
- Go to http://ourfeistyprincess.com/
- Contact me at [email protected]
At the very most of you are unable to contribute at this point of time, please take a little time to click on the nuffnang ads above. All proceeds would go into Charmaine's funds.http://www.facebook.com/l/;http://ourfeistyprincess.blogspot.com/
http://www.tnp.sg/news/story/0,4136,204956,00.html
