After weeks of her daughter suffering from a high temperature, lack of sleep and coughs, nothing would have prepared Nkele Modibogo to learn that her three-year-old child was actually suffering from early symptoms of leukaemia. 

After two years of undergoing a rigorous and body-battering chemotherapy regimen at Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital in Soweto, Molemo, now five years old, was finally released from cancer treatment last month after doctors could not longer detect the cancer in her body. She is officially in remission and recovering from her home in Orange Farm, south of Joburg.  

Leukaemia is a cancer of the body’s blood-forming tissues, including the bone marrow and the lymphatic system and is treated with chemotherapy – a drug treatment that uses powerful chemicals to kill fast-growing cells in the body.

Molemo’s treatment meant that she’d sometimes be put on chemotherapy and hospitalised for between two weeks to a month at a time, and this resulted in her missing out on school for two years. 

Modibogo first picked up in 2021 that the then three-old daughter was not well when she started having fever symptoms and was losing weight rapidly. 

“She started coughing, I would tell myself it was just flu and would take her to the nearest clinic or doctor. After a little while, the coughs were still there and I thought it was tuberculosis. 

“We went to another clinic and the nurse said there was liquid in her lungs, and this time I was told to give her antibiotics and see if she will get better in seven days. But it carried on even after that,” said Modibogo.

Modibogo, who is a mother of three, took her daughter to a doctor who suggested they go to Bara Hospital because she thought it could be pneumonia. 

“I went to Bara, where they ran a couple of blood tests and X-rays. We got the results later that day that she had cancer, but they didn’t know which one; they said they would do more tests, so they admitted her and later confirmed she had leukaemia,” she said. 

She was admitted to the hospital’s paediatric oncology ward.

Dr Thandeka Ngcana, one of the oncologists who treated Molemo, said the child was frail.

“She had shown signs of cancer and had lost 20% of her body weight. We immediately put her on chemotherapy. The treatment can be harsh to the body because it kills the cancer cells and patients tend to be prone to infections because their immune system is weakened. Side effects include weight and hair loss, diarrhoea and a sore mouth.

“The challenge with treating children is that kids cannot explain where the pain comes from and what kind of pain they are feeling. They do not have the same insight as the adult patients, all they see is this lady in a white coat (nurse or doctor) who is hurting them when we are actually trying to ease their pain,” said Ngcana, adding that children often feel neglected by their family when they are hospitalised. 

Modibogo said not being able to visit Molemo during her hospital stay was the hardest thing she had to endure as it was in the height of Level 3 lockdown, this led to her to keeping in touch with the hospital nurses to get health updates on her daughter.  

“I remember the first time I went to see her after her admission, and she had dry tears on her cheeks, and I could see she had been crying. It was sad for me that I could not be able to comfort or protect her when she needed it. Whatever pain she was facing, I wasn’t able to be there for her.” 

Now in grade R, Molemo will not be progressing to school with her peers next year because of the two years of schooling she missed.  

Molemo was full of energy when Sowetan visited her at her home. She’d jump up and down in excitement,  picking different spots she wanted to have her photos taken around her yard while striking a pose.  

Dr Ngcana said they would continue to monitor Molemo’s progress for the next five years and if no cancer was found thereafter she would officially be declared cured of the disease. 

Modibogo, a safety officer, said things have not gone back to normal for her as she feels like she cannot trust anyone to take care of her daughter whenever she is not around. 

“Sometimes I would go out with friends and I would call whoever is looking after her non-stop, trying to check if everything is going well and if she has been given her medication,” said Modibogo. 

Dr Ngcana said her paediatric oncology ward treats about 120 patients a year and has 40 beds. She said leukaemia accounted for about 60% of the patients they help. 

“Most people think that cancer means death. That’s not true. With early detection and treatment, cancer can be cured. Parents need to look out for general signs like unexplainable weight loss, pain, lumps and bumps in odd areas,” said Dr Ngcana.