Lakita Abongo

13-year-old Lakita Frida Abongo found herself where no one would have ever imagined she would be. A normal girl living a normal life in Kenya, Africa with her best friends, family, and late Father by her side a broken bone would have just been a small bump in the road, but what was going to happen next would completely change her life. After a long day of school, she arrived at home complaining of knee pain. After numerous trips to the doctor and many tests she was diagnosed with Osteosarcoma.

So Lakita and her mom packed their bags and flew to New Dehli , India in hopes of getting the best treatments to cure her cancer. After a year and a half of strong chemotherapy and intensive surgery where the tumor was removed and replaced the bone with a prosthetic the Doctors would give her the news she had been waiting for, that she was cancer free. A sigh of relief from her mom, family and friends glad that the cancer was gone, and she could go back to an almost normal life. But again, what was to come would be what no one ever expected.

After an amazing year of being cancer free the cancer came back, she was re diagnosed with Relapsed Osteosarcoma with Li Fraumeni Syndrome, and it came back even stronger than the last. This time the cancer would take her back to India away from everything she had known and loved. Again, began the rounds of strong chemotherapy and radiation long nights of pain and long days of waiting. Not only was she in a place where she had no friends or family, but she was 13-year-old girl who just wanted to make Tik Tok’s, draw, go shopping and laugh with the ones closest to her. Still after 2 rounds of chemotherapy, after loads of research and decision-making doctors at the Medanata Hospital, Gurgaon concluded that the best decision would be to amputate her left leg.

Amputation was never what now 13-year-old Lakita would have expected and she never would have thought that she would be returning to Kenya, Africa and leaving behind her limb. Now this left everyone with the question of well… Is the cancer gone now? Unfortunately, the answers that the doctors would give came with a 40,000-dollar price tag something called a Stem Cell Transplant... because the biopsy of the tumor that was removed revealed that chemotherapy was not working. She would not be able to begin the treatment until it was all paid for. Now leaves 13-year-old Lakita and her mom with what seems to be the only decision, to go through with the treatment. But where the $40,000 dollars is coming from is dawning over Lakita’s mom because this was not the first time Lakita’s mom Joyce had been in this situation. Years earlier Lakita’s dad was diagnosed with colon cancer and just like Lakita treatment expenses were very costly so Joyce and her husband used all of their savings and the financial support of their friends and family in hopes that these expensive treatments would save his life.

Unfortunately, he lost his battle to colon cancer in 2012 and left behind his wife and daughter Lakita. Now back in the position she was in almost 9 years before, but this time without the help of her husband and not enough finances to help treat her daughter she looks to the financial support of her friends and family. Unfortunately, now more than ever amidst the Covid-19 pandemic Joyce is out of work and unable to return to Kenya, and family and friends are also out of work leaving the $40,000-bill unpaid, and questions unanswered.