Leukemia-stricken teenager needs help against leukemia

By Ramon Dacawi

BAGUIO CITY -- Jhosie dela Pena, a 43-year old mother of three boys from Outlook Drive  barangay here is in anguish. She’s desperate over the medical finding that John Phillip, her 16-year old son, had suffered a relapse in his fight against cancer.

John Phillip, second of her three boys with husband Patrick dela Pena, a 46-year old construction worker, should, at the least, be in senior high school by now. Two years ago, however, the kid underwent medical check-up and medication for what appeared to be typhoid fever.

After a week of treatment, John Philip noticed swelling on his lips and gums and was having abdominal pain. He returned to the hospital for another check-up.

That’s when doctors came up with the final diagnosis: acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), a type of blood cancer also known as acute non-lymphocytic leukemia (ANLL).

Wikipedia, the free on-ling encyclopedia, notes that AML “is a cancer of the myeloid line of blood cells, characterized by the rapid growth of abnormal white blood  cells  that accumulate in the bone marrow and interfere with the production of normal blood cells”.

The blood cancer has been qualified as “acute” because it “progresses  rapidly and is typically fatal within weeks or months if left untreated”.

Despite the Dela Penas’ limited givens dependent on Patrick’s earnings as construction worker, the family struggled to cope with the demands of treatment through chemotherapy which, in the case of blood cancers, requires much longer period to complete than treatment protocols for other cancers.

Thinking that he was on the way to recovery, John Phillip re-enrolled in high school last June. He had to drop out same month when he suffered a relapse. It meant he was back to square one in his treatment and had to restart the chemotherapy process.

The setback was emotionally and financially draining for a young family that had hoped deliverance from a vicious foe that doesn’t choose victims its size. Before the relapse, they had already used up over P100,000 for John Philip’s protracted battle against the big C.  

“If not for the relapse, John Philip would now be on maintenance medication instead of having to go back to chemotherapy, this time on a stronger protocol,” Jhosie rued.

Under the new treatment plan, the kid must  have to undergo four monthly remission induction phase sessions pegged at P27,000 per session. 

He undertook the first last July, with the three remaining delayed due to his body’s inability to cope with the process and his family’s difficulty raising the costs.

Due to family’s financial misfortune, Preenz John, the eldest son, now 19, quit schooling when he was in second year high school. John Paolo, the youngest at 14, is in his second year at the Pacdal annex of the Baguio City National High School.

“We can only make a public appeal now,” Josie said as she submitted an authority  she signed with her husband for the publication of John Philip’s case so Samaritans among readers can respond.

People who can help may ring up John Philip’s number (09293711230) or that of his mother (0908150925).

They may visit the family at No. 3, Purok 4, Outlook Drive Barangay or get in touch with  punong barangay Mike Arnaiz at the barangay hall at the back of The Mansion.