Why I feel bound to ‘KNH family’

It is 16 years since Daniel Muriithi was discharged from the Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH). But his one-year stay at the facility on cancer treatment has bound him with what he calls, “my KNH family”.

Barely a child, Daniel was diagnosed with cancer. His sister, a nurse, had noticed an unusual growth on his neck, prompting a battery of medical tests he assumed would be brief to allow him report to his new school.

However, this was short-lived when the first test was inconclusive and the second confirmed he had Hodgkin’s lymphoma.

“I was only 13, sick and confused and admitted to KNH ground floor Ward 1E,” he says in nostalgia, adding that he had just completed primary school education and was looking forward to an exciting time in secondary school with new friends, in a new environment.

Hodgkin’s lymphoma is a cancer that attacks the networks of glands and vessels spread throughout the body, known as the lymphatic system.

It normally presents itself as a painless swelling in a lymph node, usually located in the neck, armpit or groin.

“The word ‘cancer’ pierced through my heart but with assurance from my family, I was determined to prove I had my entire life ahead of me,” says Daniel. The second-last born in a family of nine recalls a family meeting where members decided to support him through an in-patient treatment programme at KNH.

Difficult moments

“For the next one year, I was scheduled for eight phases of chemotherapy, each two weeks apart. The children’s cancer ward became my home,” says Daniel.

“I made many friends. We bonded because in our little worlds, we understood that we were in hospital for prolonged periods undergoing different modes of cancer treatment, ranging from chemotherapy, radiotherapy and surgery while others were undergoing follow-up tests,” he says.

“The treatment was tough. Our best times were playing football in the afternoons when we were not recovering from side effects of the treatment,” he says.

There were difficult moments, especially when some of his friends whom had become like family died. Then, as the eldest child in the ward, young Daniel had to explain why the missing child could not come out to play. “Empty beds that had once belonged to our friends, were depressing,” he says.

His favourite past-time was the reading sessions with volunteers who taught art, played music or simply came to kill the long afternoons with the sick. Memories that will not fade fast include the thrilling short rides taken in Mukuria’s car, a volunteer who spent time with them.

“There is something about men and machines, even under the strongest dose of chemotherapy. We were excited to sit in his car and make short trips within the hospital parking, even a few metres to no destination,” says Daniel.

He strives to recreate these memories; even better ones, for children currently at KNH. When the then teenager was handed a clean bill of health a year later, he was at a crossroads: happy that he was going to rejoin secondary school, but sad because he was leaving Ward 1E. A place that had become his home.

After he was discharged, Daniel continued follow-up sessions every three months, that later graduated to bi-annual then yearly visits. Meanwhile, he was adjusting well to studies at Kangaru High School. “My greatest fear was recurrence of the cancer, but I knew that I had the greatest support system from my family, my young friends and the medical team at KNH,” says Daniel.

He graduated with a B+ that earned him a place at Egerton University, where he took a Bachelor of Commerce course and thereafter launched several businesses.

But even as he set up his business ventures, Daniel says he owes his life to the KNH Children Cancer Ward for taking care of him on all matters, including his physical and psychological needs as a patient.

“I never lacked because I was at home,” says Daniel who is also studying a law degree at a local university.

As a patient, Daniel was old enough to feel the passion of health workers who saved his life. And for that, he is back at the facility to help with feeding and playing with the children or simply sitting with them in the playroom.

“A minute or two spent smiling with a patient could be the only happy moment they have that day,” he says.

“I was inspired to volunteer as a way of giving back to this community of doctors, patients, nurses and other health workers who were so compassionate about my health many years ago,” says Daniel.

Journey of pricks

According to him, cancer opens a can of dead-ended possibilities, shakes relationships and strengthens others. It marks the beginning of a journey of pricks, scans, medicines and tens of consultations to best understand the condition.

Today, he goes to KNH every Sunday afternoon to spend time with the children currently admitted to the cancer ward; moments he relishes even more because some of his friends accompany him religiously to this referral hospital.

“It is not about the gifts I take to them; it is the time we spend together in an environment that was once my home for 12 months,” he says. According to the World Health Organisation, lung, prostate, colorectal, stomach and liver cancer are the most common types of cancer in men, while breast, colorectal, lung, uterine cervix and stomach cancer are most common among women.

Runs in families

Though the cause of Hodgkin’s lymphoma is largely unknown, it has also been known to run in families. Kenya Network Cancer Organisation official David Makumi echoes Daniel’s message - that each individual should take an active role to live a healthier lifestyle to prevent some forms of cancer.

“About 30 per cent of cancers can be prevented by cutting down on smoking, alcohol consumption, eating healthier and staying active, besides going for regular health checks,” says Mr Makumi.

Makumi says cancer should be demystified as a death sentence because if detected early and treatment and management administered immediately, patients can lead a quality life as evidenced in Daniels case. “However, there are silent and aggressive cancers that manifest differently, thus need for a case-by-case management by a specialist,’ he says.

However, he encourages information on cancer to be made readily available in schools, homes and institutions so that fear associated with cancer lessens. “Everyone has something to offer in this fight against cancer, including time,” Daniel concludes.