Fight for Ferdinand
Donation protected
Meet Ferdinand Miguel B. Señga Jr., my friend’s adorable 6-year old son. Ferdinand is a happy and intelligent boy. He used to be the first honor in his class and a consistent gold medalist. He enjoys playing with his Granpa. At home, he enjoys reading the newspaper and watching TV. He very much knows when is the time to play and to study.
October 2015, they noticed a non-tender nodule on his right neck and was later diagnosed with primary complex. He was then treated with Anti-Koch’s medicines.
In November to December 2015, the mass on his neck continues to increase in size. It was when they decided to have him checked again and this time, Ferdinand was advised for a neck biopsy.
The biopsy revealed “Kikuchi Fujimoto disease”, commonly called histiocytic necrotizing lymphadenitis. An uncommon, idiopathic, generally self-limited cause of lymphadenitis (taken from medscape). There were no medications given because the family was advised that it is self-limiting.
It was really fast that in January 2016, the mass covered half of his neck and was advised for surgery to avoid airway blockage. The surgery happened on January 5, 2016.
February 2016 came, the mass continued to increase in size and they were informed that it could be a recurrence of the disease. Another biopsy was done, but the Doctors still couldn’t confirm the diagnosis.
In March 2016, the mass from the surgery was sent to National Kidney and Transplant Institute for further analysis. On March 10, 2016, Ferdinand’s family got the result showing that he has “Burkitt’s Lymphoma”. A cancer of the lymphatic system, caused by the Epstein–Barr virus, chiefly affecting children. The family decided to bring Ferdinand in Manila for treatment.
At first meeting with his Doctor, my friend’s family was informed that this type of cancer is very aggressive and that it can get worse in just a few days, thus immediate chemotherapy should be done. March 13, 2016 was his first day of admission – for a week, he had series of tests (blood chem, CT scan, bone marrow test) to know how far out the cancer is and to determine the protocol suited for his case.
March 21, 2016 was the start of his first chemo session (CODOX-M protocol). He needed to be confined during the course of treatment for close monitoring, since the chemo drug might poison him, if not given sufficient amount of drug to counter it. He also needed to be hydrated and have good urine output, so as to allow secretion of chemo drug for it not to stay longer in his body. Also, his family was advised that it’s already Stage II cancer and that Ferdinand is at risk for local metastasis to his brain. Although part of his treatment is to administer the drug through the spinal space (intrathecal) to prevent cancer cells from entering the brain. This procedure is, however, very traumatic for him. It is normally done under general anesthesia, but due to the large neck mass, his Doctor didn’t opt for it for the airway might collapse. Ferdinand had to go through it under local anesthesia only. This same time, the family was advised that he needs to undergo six chemo sessions, 21 days apart. He was placed on reverse isolation.
After first chemo session
His first chemo ended with a positive response; no complications, negative cancer cells in the brain and the mass in his neck significantly decreased in size. After a few days, Ferdinand was confined to a local hospital due to fever, but was able to recover just in time for his next chemo.
His second chemo session happened on the 11th of April; start of hair loss, vomiting and weight loss. Even so, it ended with a positive feedback and the mass was no longer evident, physically.
His third chemo started on May 1, 2016. Ferdinand experienced excessive hair loss, more instances of vomiting to the point that he could no longer tolerate oral drugs.
His 4th chemo session was on May 23, 2016 – no more hair, significant weight loss and loss of appetite (barely eats solid food).
June 11, 2016, two days prior to his supposed 5th chemo, he was rushed to the hospital because he was feeling very weak, not really eating a full meal for almost a week and had headache. They couldn’t proceed with the 5th session because headache became a significant problem. MRI was done and revealed that Ferdinand has sinusitis.
Then his family also noticed that there was swelling on his right neck and it seemed like a mass is starting to grow again.
Now, this part is painful like I, myself, couldn’t fathom the news. It saddens me what this smart little boy is going through. The family was advised by the Doctor that Ferdinand stopped responding to the treatment. A new protocol (RICE) needs to be done. RICE is the name of a combination of cancer drugs for non Hodgkin lymphoma or Hodgkin lymphoma that has come back after previous treatment. It is the ICE chemotherapy combination with the drug rituximab (http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/cancers-in-general/treatment/cancer-drugs/rice#63VwTiQIkt1XFhwG.99).
This protocol, however, is very costly and Ferdinand needs to undergo 3 sessions. He has already undergone 1 session and has 2 more sessions to go. Each session costs $6000.00. And after the last session, major diagnostic tests will be done to check Ferdinand's response to the treatment.. That's why we are asking you to help us raise the $13K to complete his treatment.
At his young age, I couldn’t believe that he sees life with so much positivity. You see, this little kiddo is such a fighter – he still can afford to smile.
Let us help Ferdinand live a normal and healthy life again. Let us shower him lots of love. Any donation will do and will be greatly appreciated, especially this time of need. Thank you so much!
October 2015, they noticed a non-tender nodule on his right neck and was later diagnosed with primary complex. He was then treated with Anti-Koch’s medicines.
In November to December 2015, the mass on his neck continues to increase in size. It was when they decided to have him checked again and this time, Ferdinand was advised for a neck biopsy.
The biopsy revealed “Kikuchi Fujimoto disease”, commonly called histiocytic necrotizing lymphadenitis. An uncommon, idiopathic, generally self-limited cause of lymphadenitis (taken from medscape). There were no medications given because the family was advised that it is self-limiting.
It was really fast that in January 2016, the mass covered half of his neck and was advised for surgery to avoid airway blockage. The surgery happened on January 5, 2016.
February 2016 came, the mass continued to increase in size and they were informed that it could be a recurrence of the disease. Another biopsy was done, but the Doctors still couldn’t confirm the diagnosis.
In March 2016, the mass from the surgery was sent to National Kidney and Transplant Institute for further analysis. On March 10, 2016, Ferdinand’s family got the result showing that he has “Burkitt’s Lymphoma”. A cancer of the lymphatic system, caused by the Epstein–Barr virus, chiefly affecting children. The family decided to bring Ferdinand in Manila for treatment.
At first meeting with his Doctor, my friend’s family was informed that this type of cancer is very aggressive and that it can get worse in just a few days, thus immediate chemotherapy should be done. March 13, 2016 was his first day of admission – for a week, he had series of tests (blood chem, CT scan, bone marrow test) to know how far out the cancer is and to determine the protocol suited for his case.
March 21, 2016 was the start of his first chemo session (CODOX-M protocol). He needed to be confined during the course of treatment for close monitoring, since the chemo drug might poison him, if not given sufficient amount of drug to counter it. He also needed to be hydrated and have good urine output, so as to allow secretion of chemo drug for it not to stay longer in his body. Also, his family was advised that it’s already Stage II cancer and that Ferdinand is at risk for local metastasis to his brain. Although part of his treatment is to administer the drug through the spinal space (intrathecal) to prevent cancer cells from entering the brain. This procedure is, however, very traumatic for him. It is normally done under general anesthesia, but due to the large neck mass, his Doctor didn’t opt for it for the airway might collapse. Ferdinand had to go through it under local anesthesia only. This same time, the family was advised that he needs to undergo six chemo sessions, 21 days apart. He was placed on reverse isolation.
After first chemo session
His first chemo ended with a positive response; no complications, negative cancer cells in the brain and the mass in his neck significantly decreased in size. After a few days, Ferdinand was confined to a local hospital due to fever, but was able to recover just in time for his next chemo.
His second chemo session happened on the 11th of April; start of hair loss, vomiting and weight loss. Even so, it ended with a positive feedback and the mass was no longer evident, physically.
His third chemo started on May 1, 2016. Ferdinand experienced excessive hair loss, more instances of vomiting to the point that he could no longer tolerate oral drugs.
His 4th chemo session was on May 23, 2016 – no more hair, significant weight loss and loss of appetite (barely eats solid food).
June 11, 2016, two days prior to his supposed 5th chemo, he was rushed to the hospital because he was feeling very weak, not really eating a full meal for almost a week and had headache. They couldn’t proceed with the 5th session because headache became a significant problem. MRI was done and revealed that Ferdinand has sinusitis.
Then his family also noticed that there was swelling on his right neck and it seemed like a mass is starting to grow again.
Now, this part is painful like I, myself, couldn’t fathom the news. It saddens me what this smart little boy is going through. The family was advised by the Doctor that Ferdinand stopped responding to the treatment. A new protocol (RICE) needs to be done. RICE is the name of a combination of cancer drugs for non Hodgkin lymphoma or Hodgkin lymphoma that has come back after previous treatment. It is the ICE chemotherapy combination with the drug rituximab (http://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/cancers-in-general/treatment/cancer-drugs/rice#63VwTiQIkt1XFhwG.99).
This protocol, however, is very costly and Ferdinand needs to undergo 3 sessions. He has already undergone 1 session and has 2 more sessions to go. Each session costs $6000.00. And after the last session, major diagnostic tests will be done to check Ferdinand's response to the treatment.. That's why we are asking you to help us raise the $13K to complete his treatment.
At his young age, I couldn’t believe that he sees life with so much positivity. You see, this little kiddo is such a fighter – he still can afford to smile.
Let us help Ferdinand live a normal and healthy life again. Let us shower him lots of love. Any donation will do and will be greatly appreciated, especially this time of need. Thank you so much!
Organizer and beneficiary
Karl Labitad
Organizer
Richmond Hill, NY
Ferdinand Miguel Bernados-Señga Jr.
Beneficiary
