Children with Cancer Examples

This page also is written from the documentary "A Lion In The House" shown on PBS in 2006, showing several children with cancer followed on the course of 6 years and filmed at the Cincinnati Children's Hospital in the US.

As the causes of cancer in children remain officially unknown, it is possible to wonder if abuses could be the cause of the illness.

Justin, a fighter without rescue

Shown in the documentary when 20 year-old, had had cancer since 10, it is rare that a child with cancer can survive so long, but he seemed to go from bad to worse.

His mother was very sensitive, very devoted : "sometimes by the way he looks at me I feel guilty, as if he holds me responsible" (frequently the mother is the blind parent while abuses are done by the father or step-father).

When Justin's father tried to joke, he then asked his son "am I driving you crazy ?". Justin answered seriously "you are crazy".

Justin wanted all the way the medications and treatments, no matter how bad the effects, even though he and his parents were offered to choose by the physicians : treatments or let go. But after 10 years of painful and disabled life complications occurred, he got a leg paralyzed then a stroke, then got disfigured. His situation seemed hopeless, surviving just bringing more sorrow, more pain, more distress.

When given last sacrament by a priest, life in him was still there, showing in his quite sparky eyes. After he had a remission that lasted one month he then died some time later.

Alexandra, killed by medical treatments

She was a little girl with leukemia, shown at home playing with her sister, quite active and happy, in good health, then relapse happened. Her reaction to medical treatments brought a remission, then the child was down again, cried for something but her mother refused it [this is an example of when adults do not follow children's needs even when the children are in dire condition. The least all adults involved could do would be to ask the children "what can we do to help ?", then follow what the children answer].

Her mother seemed to be good with her but at times seemed totally insensitive : she could joke with the filming crew in the presence of her daughter who was in bed in hospital room, seemed on the way to dying and in pain. An other time at the hospital, when these parents were announced that their child's illness was not improving, the mother jokingly said to the father "you're there for 3 more weeks !" with a big laugh.

The little girl survived and cried in relief when she was able to walk again. Later at hospital all medical treatments were tried but the leukemia in her would not reverse. The hospital staff then decided she should go home on hospice. When she left the hospital, she cried because she would miss the people there.

At home she seemed good enough and stabilized, but the father decided against medical opinion she should have an other round of chemotherapy. He brought her back to the hospital. Alexandra begged for mercy, struggled, cried "no no no !", screamed and fought as much as she could (facts told by her grand mother who disapproved totally that new assault on Alexandra's health, the filming crew was not there). Alexandra's mother did not take her side. The hospital staff did not oppose either and did chemo on her again. Within 12 hours Alexandra was dead.

No matter what they felt, the hospital team executed the father's will which executed mercilessly the child. The parents' will was accepted even though the professionals knew it would do her no good. After the child died nobody was prosecuted : in such situations the basic right of children to live is brought to nothing, all legal, moral and human values are gone.

Alexandra had reached the limit of what she could bear : she finally had to suffer being put to death by the very people she loved in the hospital and who had the duty of protecting her.

[please see also on that subject the page "Betray No More the Children".]

Tim, seemed bound for a happy life

He was a black teenage boy, his mother was obese and had an other child very young, whom she adopted, the father died a long time ago from gun shot. Tim was permanently fed by a tube inserted in his nose, he had to keep it continually : like other medical procedures it added to the discomfort of the young sufferer.

He was formerly very healthy, very active, social and smart, playing with other children, joking, went to a MacDonald fast food for a part time job after school, he had a good sense of relating to others.

The tumor in him resisted all medical treatments and came to the point where death seemed coming. Before he lost consciousness a black woman sang to him, and he was all the time moaning at the rhythm of his breathing, as if it was all he could communicate anymore, as if to mean "I am still with you".

Noteworthy : his cancer was discovered exactly at the time when his mother adopted the other little boy, black also.

Rev. 2015