When cancer treatment gets in the way of celebrating Christmas, the holiday can take on added importance, especially for children. Which is why a charity helped to make this Christmas extra special for a 6-year-old boy named Karos Rasoul, who was in treatment the last two years for a rare type of kidney cancer.
Rasoul, from Clapham, London, got to meet the cast of renowned Birmingham Repertory Theatre's “The Snowman,” who reenacted scenes from the play with him on stage, and took him for a ride in the side car of the Snowman’s yellow motorbike.
Read MoreFor a few years, Rasoul, who had surgery to remove his left kidney, was in treatment. This included chemotherapy to attack the remaining cancer. During this time, he and his family didn’t have much to celebrate about, so now that he’s healthy and doing well, the holidays are especially poignant.
“Christmas really did come early for us today. It was so wonderful to spend time with Karos and see him so happy and full of energy, after all that he's been through he really is an inspiration to the whole family,” Rasoul’s mom, Fermisk Mustafa, told the charity.
Information about Wilms’ Tumor
Wilms’ tumor is an extremely rare type of kidney cancer that effects 7.1 per every 1 million children under the age of 15, according to the National Cancer Institute. About 650 cases of Wilms’ tumor are diagnosed in the U.S. each year.
Ssurvival rates for Wilms’ tumors are getting better; for children younger than 15 years old with Wilms’ tumor, the survival rate increased from 74% in 1975 to 88% in 2010.
Wilms’ tumor is often treated solely with surgery, but sometimes chemotherapy is necessary. Other types of kidney cancers include renal cell carcinoma (the most common kidney cancer in adults) and mesoblastic nephroma, which usually appears within the first few months of a child's life.
Cancer During the Holidays
During the holidays, cancer survivors can feel particularly overwhelmed. Karen Ballou, a Hodgkin's lymphoma survivor, told SurvivorNet that focusing on the positive things in your life can make a huge difference.
Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivor Karen Ballou on getting through the holidays by staying positive and focused.
"My advice to others is to stay focused," Ballou said. "Think about one thing in your life or two things in your life that you can see when you're well that you want to go after. … That's what got me through the holidays."
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