Cancer Epidemic

• Rebecca Gordon, Grade 8
• Short Story
• 2009

The young doctor said it, one word. It echoed through the air, bouncing off the walls and eventually finding my dumbstruck ears. As we sat in the small doctor’s room, surrounded by needles and the smell of plastic gloves, nothing seemed to sink in. My mother, twin sister, younger brother and I sat speechless before the nervous doctor. Leukaemia, my twin sister Ella had been diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. It hit us like a brick in the stomach. The doctor looked at us all carefully before describing the rare disease in detail. Nobody could believe Ella of all people, she was always so healthy, but lately she has been very ill: being tired and dizzy often. Nobody was able to sleep that night.

The following morning Ella was in an ambulance, on her way to The Royal Marsden Hospital. The whole family were there to show their support as Ella lay lifeless on the small bed attached to numerous tubes. She looked worse every day, dark bruises appearing out of nowhere on her fragile body. Soon after she was diagnosed, the chemotherapy began. Not long after that her thick, blonde, curly hair began to fall out. Her face was drained and pale and she hardly ever moved because of the muscle and leg pains caused by the drugs.

I was given a week off school to stay with Ella, once every couple of days, a school friend would come to see her too, she liked that. Not everyone could stay with her, after a month Mum and Dad had to go back to work to pay for the costly treatment; no longer able keep vigil at her bedside. We moved house so we can be closer to her. The teachers would give me her school work to take for her but she was too weak to do it.

A year passed, she was still very ill, it was soon to be our birthday. The family prayed she would survive to turn thirteen. The day arrived but Ella was too nauseous to go anywhere, so we threw her a small party in her ward. She seemed to appreciate that; her gift was a Nintendo DS Lite and a game. I didn’t feel it was appropriate to celebrate without her.

There is no cure for acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. The cancer was spreading and Ella only had a small chance of surviving. She didn’t talk much but when she did, she told me not to worry, she would get through this. I wished I could believe her but my optimism was fading, she looked so weak and thin.

Eventually the chemotherapy finally finished, her curly hair started to grow back and her cheeks were more flushed. She appeared to have beaten the battle with the cancer, it had been so close. Every six weeks she has to have regular checkups. It will be a long time before we know whether the cancer has gone into remission...