I am writing this letter to you in deep pain. My name is Natalia Rogacheva. My son Dima is 10 years old. He fell ill when he was six. First we were admitted to our regional hospital in Kaluga and immediately learned the diagnosis: acute myeloid leukemia. Dima was in very grave condition, and the blood counts were almost zero. The doctors prescribed chemotherapy, because there is no other way out in such cases, and half a year later Dima was in remission. We were allowed to go home. Dima started his school studies, but, since he may not go to school now, he studied at home and turned out to be an attentive and bright pupil.
Nobody could imagine that the disease would return. But a relapse happened in March 2003. We were directed to the Russian Children's Clinical Hospital in Moscow. We knew nothing of this city and its people. But the kind doctors made us feel at home. Chemotherapy was started again, remission was attained, but it became clear that marrow transplantation was needed to conquer the disease completely.
Dima has a younger brother, but it turned out that this brother cannot be a matching donor. Search for a donor was started abroad. This search is a very expensive process, improbably expensive for us, but kind people provided the money. We thank everybody who helped us!
But, during the search for a matching donor, in June 2004, our boy had a relapse again. However, a donor was soon found, three cycles of chemotherapy led to another remission, and Dima's transplantation took place at the end of 2004. This Dima spent 3.5 months in an isolated sterile ward. Further, he was allowed to go out. And then there was that terrible morning when Dima got up and said that he could not hear anything with his left ear. It turned out that he had a tumor in his ear. We nearly fell off our feet. There was chemotherapy again, but now radiation therapy is also required.
The examinations and treatment require a lot of money. During Dima's treatment, our family has spent all its money and used the help of all our relatives and friends. So I must just ask everybody who can hear us. Please help us save our boy!
With respect and gratitude,
Natalia Rogacheva

The doctor's comment

- Dmitri Rogachev is receiving treatment at the Department of General Hematology. His diagnosis is acute lyeloid leukemia, isolated extramedullary relapse after unrelated marrow transplantation. The boy needs radiation therapy on a linear accelerator at the Radiology Department of the Burdenko Institute of Neurosurgery. The radiation therapy will cost 75,000 roubles (about $2500).

Dr. Mikhail A. Maschan, Head of the Department of General Hematology

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