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Saving children with leukaemia
(newsphoto)
Updated: 2005-12-30 06:28
Olympic champion of the 110-metre hurdles Liu Xiang
holds up a promotional T-shirt at the launching ceremony of the project
"Saving Children With Leukaemia" at the Great Hall of the People in
Beijing Thursday December 29, 2005. Liu is one of the representatives of
the project, which has been co-launched by the Chinese Red Cross
Foundation, enterprises, websites and major media organizations including
China Daily. [newsphoto]
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A mother from East China's Anhui Province knelt down in
tears in front of hundreds of people and cameras.
The scene was an unexpected one at yesterday's launching ceremony of a
project named "Saving Children With Leukaemia," but demonstrated Zhang
Changfeng's compassion for her two sick sons.
One of her sons Hu Shuzhang 14, was diagnosed with a highly malignant tumour
in October and her other son Hu Shuai, 13, was diagnosed with leukaemia, a type
of blood cancer, at almost the same time.
The burden is obviously too much for a rural family with an annual income
averaging around 4,000 yuan (US$500). A fund of 100,000 yuan (US$12,330) that
came from relatives and the public has almost been used up. "It almost killed
me," the mother said, "especially when my younger son told me he wanted to give
up medical treatment for his brother."
The two boys decided who should go to Beijing for the best treatment by
drawing straws, and the younger one cheated to save his brother. He placed two
"straws" both with the word "treatment" on for his older brother to choose.
His brother therefore chose a straw with the word "treatment", and so headed
to Beijing. He is currently being treated at Beijing's Jishuitan Hospital.
"I could never have imagined that the younger of my boys would do such a
thing," the mother said. "We don't have money, but I would give up my life for
his. I cannot watch him die."
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