Dayem studies at Bahria University, Karachi and wants to become an IT specialist like his father. He is passionate about football and supports the German team. He is an enthusiastic child with a lot of positivity. It is hard to believe that until 2008, he was fighting cancer...
Dayem's ordeal started in 2005. A generally healthy child, Dayem suddenly fell sick and experienced high-grade fever and loss of appetite. He was living in Islamabad at the time and was taken to a hospital there for treatment. However, the fever was persistent and the cause of his symptoms remained unknown. Dayem's concerned family brought him to The Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) for his diagnosis and care.
At AKUH, after relevant tests were conducted, Dayem was diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukaemia - cancer of the blood and bone marrow in which lymphocytes (a form of white blood cells) become affected. The medical team at AKUH was optimistic about his recovery and gave him hope and support.
Since cancer treatment is costly, Dayem’s parents were also worried about being able to bear the expenses associated with his visits to the Hospital. Luckily, The Aga Khan University Hospital has a welfare programme which provides affordable healthcare services to those who cannot bear their medical expenses. AKUH ensures that patient confidentiality is maintained and at no time do the healthcare professionals working with the patients, know their financial status. This ensures that patients receiving financial support get the same level of care as all other patients. With the help of this welfare programme, Dayem also received financial support for his treatment and this greatly lightened Dayem’s parents’ worries.
At The Aga Khan University Hospital, Dayem was treated by Dr. Naureen Mushtaq, Assistant Professor, Paediatric Oncology. With a comprehensive treatment plan, quality care and the dedicated efforts of doctors and other support staff at AKUH, Dayem showed remarkable improvement. He started recovering and was free of cancer within 3 years. He is now living a normal life and continues to visit AKUH for follow-up sessions.
His message for all the cancer patients is: “Do not lose hope and be brave”.
Dayem deeply admires the doctors and staff at AKUH who made sure he received the best treatment and care. He is also extremely grateful to his parents for supporting him and being there with him during his hardest times.
With early detection, right treatment and quality care, other patients like Dayem can also recover from cancer. AKUH is always there to extend its support for sick and needy patients from all backgrounds and ensures that all possible financial help is offered to them.
