Alfred suffered from leukemia: this year you can celebrate Christmas at home

Suffered from leukemia

Of: Malin Wigen

Published: December 24, 2020 at 9:32 p.m.

Alfred, 4, became seriously ill with leukemia the day before Christmas Eve last year.

For a time he could not walk.

– For us, our whole life had collapsed, the only thing I could think was that my son was going to die, says Father Andreas Janliden.

In the Janliden family in Hammarö, they have decorated much more before Christmas, which this year will take place at home and not in the hospital.

– We were the first in the neighborhood to mount everything. We ignore what everyone thinks, but now we go ahead and suck all we can out of Christmas, because this year is one hundred percent better than last.

Last year at this point, their lives turned upside down. The week before Christmas, her son Alfred, then three years old, had a fever. Also, two lumps appeared on his neck. They sought care at the health center for a security check.

– Everything went well because Alfred was alert, he didn’t seem sick at all. His values ​​looked good, says mother Lina.

But later that day, when they returned home, they received a call from the health center: they had found abnormalities in Alfred’s white blood cells. Lina and Father Andreas had to go with Alfred urgently to the Karlstad hospital. The waiting room was full of people.

– I thought they would allow us to sit there until Christmas Eve, Alfred was very alert, says Andreas.

But after just ten minutes, they were called into a room where two doctors announced that they suspected Alfred had leukemia.

– Then it went black for me, I don’t remember much from there, says Andreas.

The night was spent at the hospital where Alfred’s blood samples were taken. The next day, they were told they would go to Queen Silvia’s hospital in Gothenburg, where they would anesthetize him for a bone marrow test.

– They said we would pack as we would probably have to stay there.

So it was. On December 23, at 1:25 p.m., their worst fears were confirmed: Alfred was ill with leukemia.

– It was as if all the tension was released, they had been hard days of waiting, says Lina.

Four hours after the announcement, doctors began treating Alfred for two years.

– It’s amazing that everything works when it really matters, says Andreas.

“Our whole life was ruined”

The whole family gathered at the hospital on Christmas Eve, including Alfred’s two brothers, Gustaf, 7, and Smila, 15. The staff did their best to make the day as normal as possible with Christmas presents. , Christmas food and Santa. A troubadour also played.

– On Christmas Eve, I decided that I would be strong and think positively in the future, because it is very easy to float with my thoughts. I decided that we would manage, that everything would be fine, says Lina.

For Andreas, keeping hope alive was not so easy. He collapsed and was offered to speak to a priest. Here and there he was grateful, but in retrospect he criticizes the fact that they did not become conversational support during the first period.

– There was a psychologist who was on call during the Christmas holidays and there were probably those who had a greater need for support. But for us, our whole life had fallen apart, the only thing I could think of was that my son would die.

I stop going

Alfred himself did not understand why he was in the hospital. He felt healthy. It was only in January that Lina and Andreas saw how it changed.

– In January, she stopped walking when she was in so much pain from the medication. We tried to motivate him to move, but for a while he stopped completely. He was basically listless, he didn’t even want to look at his iPad. Every once in a while we were all in a black hole, Lina says.

– It was the hardest thing for me, when he couldn’t go any further and see him get sick. To realize that even soon the four-year-old cannot go to his mother or father, or has the energy to play.

Even though there have been bad days, Lina has tried to focus on the positive and be strong. For Andreas, it has been more difficult, instead he has faced catastrophic thoughts.

– The thoughts you have are not the ones you want to write on a sheet of paper even once. When you think about the worst that can happen to cancer, you also see your child in front of you. So you have all the images of the world in your head.

The brothers were also affected by the disease.

Gustaf told me once when we were going to bed that if Alfred died he would do the same. It was terrible to hear it, it cannot be expressed in words. A six-year-old shouldn’t have that mentality.

Then came the change

After struggling for six months with all that chemotherapy means, crying, and frustration, the tipping point finally arrived. This summer, Alfred was back to his normal self.

– We removed the catheter in late summer. Now people don’t see that you are sick if you don’t know. It has improved, says Lina.

At the time of writing this report, it has been almost a year since the announcement. Alfred is in maintenance treatment and with the pandemic he must be very careful, as he is very susceptible to infection. Still, it feels great, something they didn’t dare dream of a year ago. They want to thank you very much for your attention.

– Thank you very much everyone in Karlstad and Gothenburg, you have been absolutely fantastic. They have lined up and been there for us, even the times that we ourselves didn’t know we needed it.

Advice to other parents who are going through the same

Lina: Feel sad when you feel like you should be, but also take advantage of the days that are good and focus on making the most of them. It gives the child energy and hope. If you have the ability to see the light in evil, that makes the situation easier.

Andreas: One piece of advice I would like to give is to seek help. Don’t be afraid to ask someone to do the shopping or to clean your house, or to take care of the other children or the sick person. You need help to regroup. The same advice also applies to family members: offer help because sometimes it is difficult to ask for it.

Facts: childhood cancer

• Every day a child in Sweden suffers from cancer.

• Cancer is the most common cause of death among children between the ages of 1 and 14 in Sweden.

• About 85 percent of children survive, but it varies greatly depending on the type of cancer.

• 7 out of 10 survivors suffer late complications.

• The Childhood Cancer Foundation is the largest sponsor of childhood cancer research in Sweden.

Source: Childhood Cancer Foundation

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Published: December 24, 2020 at 9:32 p.m.

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