Every year, the Virgen del Rocío hospital in Seville receives 1,000 new cases of children with cancer, who are treated at no cost. Although 30 per cent of them will die, each year the percentage of survivors tends to increase, as the chief of the department explains.
By Marilyn Perez
Vibrantly colored doors sprinkle the hallways that lead to a high-ceilinged recreation room with a connecting patio. This playroom is full of toys and learning materials. Much like most academic environments, the children who play in this space learn, laugh and grow together.
What makes it different is that it’s located in the Pediatric Cancer Department of Virgen del Rocío Hospital in Seville.
“For the parents of patients, it’s very difficult to imagine that their children can die before them,” Andex psychologist Elena Torrado said. “They’re constantly very worried.” Andex is the Association of Parents of Children with Cancer in Andalusia. The organization began in 1985 and works to help patients and families who suffer from this illness.
The head of the Pediatric Cancer Department in the hospital, Eduardo Quiroga, says that although 30 per cent of children do not survive, each year the percentage of survivors continues to increase and is currently 60-70 per cent. When they return to the hospital to visit, looking tall, attractive and healthy, Quiroga and Torrado agree that it’s one of the most gratifying aspects of their job.
“When we see former patients cured and living normal lives, it’s a wonderful feeling. We’ve had adolescents who later married and some have even brought their children to meet us,” Quiroga says.
Unfortunately, returning to visit is not an option for all childhood cancer patients. “My most emotional memory was of a friendship I made with a 15-year-old patient named Louis,” doctor Quiroga recalls. “He was an immigrant who had very little family. I went with him to the movies sometimes. When he died, it was difficult for me.”
The current age range of children in this department is 1 to 14 years, but there have been patients as old as 17. “Children have the capacity to understand more than adults realize,” he describes. “And so when the doctors inform the children of their situation, they have to tell them calmly, affectionately and age-appropriately.”
It’s important to give the child and their family time to cry after receiving the news, and to let the parents know that the doctors are going to do everything in their ability to help, Quiroga says. “We give them hope and affection. Their lives change. They’re not able to do certain things like go to school regularly anymore.”
The psychologist Elena Torrado says that is even more difficult for the adolescents to adapt to the life changes. Many maintain their group of friends, but some of them distance themselves because they are ashamed to be seen while ill.
Nothing can compare to the difficulties, challenges, and changes that occur in the lives of the patients and their families, Quiroga affirms. For example, “one parent has to leave their job in order to be with the child at all times.” However, this burden doesn’t have a monetary affect on the family in Spain as it would in the United States, since public healthcare is free in Spain. “A very poor child can receive care as expensive as a bone marrow transplant, which would not happen in the USA,” he compares. He knows it all too well because he spent time working at St. Jude’s Children Research, in Memphis.
But he emphasizes that there is always room for improvements here in Spain. “We could use more doctors, more money to research, and a house close to the hospital for the children to live at during treatment so they don’t have to sleep and stay in the hospital,” the chief of the Pediatric Cancer Department says. “I know that in Seville there are different events to raise money like raffles, dinners or bullfights… Anything that can benefit the children is welcomed.”
Andex, the association of parents, also organizes fun events like a trip to Seville amusement park Isla Mágica, parties for Christmas, and days at the beach for the children. Thanks to activities like these, many of the children, families and staff spend a lot of time together.
“They spend so much time sharing very strong emotions that they end up establishing strong bonds with the children and the families,” Quiroga says about his colleagues.
According to Andalusian Health Service (Servicio Andaluz de Salud, SAS), the Virgen del Rocío Hospital receives about 1,000 new cases of pediatric cancer each year. However, the shocking number of cases doesn’t affect the positive manner in which the workers face their job. “The harder the situation is, the more gratifying it is in the end to offer any help I can,” Torrado says.
Quiroga agrees. “I like to think that with my knowledge and with my care I have contributed to the treatment of children with cancer. When I see the look of gratitude from the parents and the smile on their child’s face, it feeds my medical spirit each day.”
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