“Dad, help!”

03:30' 19/04/2008 (GMT+7)
The healthy kid at home...
VietNamNet Bridge - Bui Duc Minh is just over 3 years old but he has suffered from blood cancer for almost one year already.
His parents, Trung and Thuy, are professors at Economics University in Hanoi, Vietnam. When they decided to take him to Singapore for special treatment in March 2008, the amount of white blood cells in his body had already reached 95% of his blood. His life seemed to be leaving him.
Little Minh told his father with tears from pain: “Dad, help. Please help me out of this.” Listening to him, feeling a sharp pain in his heart, Trung, his father, did not know what to do, since his treatment requires a large amount of money, approximately 200,000 SGD. If only he could give his son all his blood, he would do it without fail.
Here are some passages taken from his parents’ diary:
12th March 2008
This is the last day we stay here, at National Pediatrics Hospital. After spending half a year at this hospital and having more than 30 tests, the doctors still have failed to reach an exact conclusion about his disease. Little Minh has suffered too much from pain and all the long treatment. He can no longer stand it. He does not want to see anyone anymore.
Not until today did they find out that his symptoms show white blood cell marrow type M1 (acute lymphoblastic leukemia AML). The doctors say they are incapable of treating this case in Vietnam. The only hope is to take him to Singapore for special treatment.
And so we pack our things and make our way to Singapore.
19th March 2008
He is suffering from a high fever as we take him to Singapore. The number of white blood cells in his body is 400 % higher than in normal people. Little Minh cannot drink or eat. His nights are always interrupted with pains; he never has a full night’s sleep.
Right after we set foot at the airport, he had to check into the hospital immediately and go through an overall check for thirty minutes. All the results confirmed that he has acute lymphoblastic leukemia AML. He was then sent to a special room for treatment to overcome the immediate danger.
I cannot help my tears from falling during his chemical treatment process when I see him cry in pain and beg for help from his parents and family. What can I do??? At that moment, there’s nothing in my mind other than the thought I HAVE TO get him out of this pain, out of all this surgery. I never want to see him suffering from this pain again. I never want to see him scared when a nurse or a doctor comes close to him. Never.
25th March 2008
After every chemical treatment little Minh feels really tired and hurts. At home every time he gets a vaccine injection he forgets easily. Now 3 or 4 intravenous chemical treatment tubes never seem to leave his little hand. Whenever my child has a high fever, he has to have his blood checked again. There are days that he has to overcome 9 injections. The pain and fear bother him even in his dreams. Sometimes he is half-awake at night crying in his sleep and calling out to us, “Mom, dad, I’m scared…Why did this happen to me? Mom, Dad, tell me?...Why does it hurt me so much?…Please, please get me out of this pain. Mom...Dad...” His dreams and our sleep are full of tears and fearfulness for a suspended future. Once in a while it dawns on us, and we realise how far away we are from our home and from being a happy normal family.

... and the kid in hospital.

26th March 2008
We have talked to the doctor and the results are good. But the relief does not last long, as we are faced with another problem. There are only two ways of treating this disease, neither of which our family can afford:

1. Bone marrow transplant for 300.000 SGD

2. Chemotherapy for 220.000 SGD

Not to mention living expenses for our whole family for one year in Singapore.
According to Dr. Allen Yeoh, either way of treatment will succeed to some extent.
I was shocked at the huge amount of money because this amount of money is completely beyond our expectation. What do I have to do to get this amount of money in 6 months? My son’s life depends on our decision.

I look at him and I cannot think anything. All I can do at that moment is run out of the doors with tears running down my face. I have to calm down and think of some way to save my son. Even if I sold our own and only house, I would not have enough money to get out of this situation. What else can I do? It is my son’s life!

I decide to have him undergo the first phase of chemical treatment method. I only have 3 weeks to do all I can to get the money. My only hope is that some organisations can help me with the money. My son’s little tearful voice keeps spinning in my head, “Dad, please help me, please. Why do I have to suffer from this pain? Dad, tell me why?” My child is only 3.5 years old. I have to do something.

But what can I do now? I beg you for some advice, encouragement and strength, from your wisdom and experience so that I can bring some sunshine back to this little family.
Translator: He looks so small in his bed that is so big. It is not easy to translate the tearful pages of this diary. It breaks every little piece of my heart. So please, I beg you for some help for little Minh. After all, he’s just a 3 year-old child.