8-year-old boy with leukemia eager to return to school

James Anthony Laurenciana

When doctors diagnosed the eldest of her three children, James Anthony Laurenciana, with acute lymphocytic leukemia, Angelita Rio was not surprised.

“The acceptance was not that immediate, but we nevertheless faced the situation squarely because my own father died of cancer of the lungs and the grandfather of my husband Junjun died of cancer of the liver,” the 30-year-old mother told the Inquirer.

Her son was diagnosed with the disease in 2015 when he was only 4 years old. Acute lymphocytic leukemia is a form of cancer that affects the blood and bone marrow.

Now aged 8, Laurenciana will undergo his last and 14th chemotherapy session on April 4 at Philippine Children’s Medical Center.

“He told me how excited he is to enroll again in Grade 1 this June. He stopped going to school last year after only one month because he was often in the hospital,” said Angelita, who lives with her family in Taytay, Rizal.

She asked Inquirer readers for help because her son would need at least P40,000 for his last chemotherapy session and other laboratory tests.

Her husband’s salary as a bank security guard cannot cover even their everyday needs, she added.

Angelita can be reached at 0995-2068455. Donations can be deposited in the BPI account of her husband, Junjun Laurenciana (0389-0755-15).