Yesterday a fighter, today a survivor, a hero now and forever, teenager Gokulkrishnan, blood cancer survivor says ‘be strong and stay positive’ come what may!
Just like any boy of his age did, Gokulkrishnan of class eight, went to school, did his homework and played with his friends in his free time. His dream was to be an engineer one day. All his dreams and aspirations came crashing when he was diagnosed of blood cancer. He fought and won this battle against blood cancer and today life has to go on for him and his parents who are debt-ridden.
Born in a middle-class family, Gokulkrishnan’s parents gave up all their hard earned money and carefully saved belongings only to see their son alive today whose motto in life is be strong and stay positive come what may!
It was in July 2011, when an otherwise cheerful Gokulkrishnan felt tired, breathless and he was running a temperature. The fever did not subside and Gokulkrishnan did not show signs of improvement. He recalls experiencing a bleeding nose very often. He also developed blood clots that were initially red later turned blue. The medicines that were prescribed by his family doctor did not help and it was his family doctor who warned Gokulkrishnan’s parents that their son could be suffering from blood cancer.
And their fear turned out to be true as Gokulkrishnan was diagnosed of blood cancer. He was rushed to the Government Hospital (GH) in Coimbatore and little does Gokulkrishnan remember what he was going through as his memory went blank. “I do not remember anything. I was given drips and all I remember is that I had absolutely no energy to even stand up on my own. My father tells me that the doctors at GH gave up on treating me and they asked my parents to take me home.”
Like every dark cloud has a silver lining, one of the doctors at GH, Dr.Thamaraikannan advised Gokulkrishnan’s parents to get their son treated at a private multi specialty hospital in Coimbatore and this proved to be a life-saving decision. His father visited the hospital referred by the doctor and made a request to the hospital authorities to admit Gokulkrishnan, and the hospital obliged.
The night he was admitted to this private hospital, doctors administered drugs and put him on medications. Gokulkrishnan remembers feeling a lot better overnight. However the goal of completely recovering from blood cancer was far-sighted. The blood clots thankfully disappeared and a bed-ridden Gokulkrishnan recalls experiencing an internal infection in-between his right ear and neck. This he says was treated with surgery and since he was bed- ridden, for a prolonged period of time, his legs became immovable.
“There were times when I felt bad that I had to stop going to school. I was in bed all the time and I would feel very bad when I watched other kids of my age attend school. However, all the time, something inside of me told me not to worry and the gut feeling said that things will be fine one day.” Gokulkrishnan said.
His treatment for blood cancer included administering of drugs, platelets transfusion and blood transfusion. It was in 2013 that Gokulkrishnan was completely cured of blood cancer and since then once in every six months he visits the hospital to undergo the bone marrow examination. This he tells us has to continue for his life-time.
“I have started my schooling from where I left. My parents have enrolled me at a private coaching centre and I have written my class eight exams. I am confident of clearing the examinations with good marks. I will be in class ten.” says this 18-year old.
With the changing times and the changing situations in his life, his ambition too has changed. An ordinary school kid who dreamt of being an engineer one day shares with us that he wants to be an anchor on television or a radio jockey. An ardent fan of actor Ajith, his wish is to meet this superstar. Also on his wish list is to own a mobile phone, which will be fulfilled through Bindu Nair, founder of NGO Aroh that works towards supporting children and their families who are diagnosed with cancer. “Bindu ma’am has helped my family a lot. She has promised to gift me a mobile phone, I am eagerly waiting for it", Gokulkrishnan says.
As concluding remarks, when asked about the his message on this World Cancer Day, 2017, ”What should I say?” he innocently asks. “I am alive today because of the innumerable sacrifices undergone by my parents, I am thankful to all the doctors who treated me and above all I thank God for his blessings that helped me get cured. Regardless of what you go through in your life, always stay strong, positive and never ever give up. Towards the end, victory will be yours.” Gokulkrishnan ends.