How My Daughter’s Cancer Led to a Blood Drive in Uganda
Kenneth Nganda is the fundraising and communications manager at Ahavah Child Cancer Care Uganda, where he leads strategic efforts to mobilize resources and raise awareness for children affected by cancer. His daughter Gabriella was diagnosed with leukemia at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The day my daughter Gabriella was diagnosed with leukemia, my country, Uganda, shut down because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The days and weeks that followed were a nightmare. To go anywhere, you had to have permission from a local authority. I had to do this even when my child had cancer.
We had a difficult time getting to the Uganda Cancer Institute in Kampala, the capital and largest city in my country. We live in a place called Nagalama, in the Mukono District of Uganda. It is about 39 kilometers (24 miles) from Kampala.
In the children’s ward, children were going through all kinds of cancer treatments. I remember thinking how hopeless things felt. Everybody there was holding their child and clinging to them for dear life.
Critical need for blood
We learned that some children had died because of the lack of blood and blood products.
I asked myself, “What are we going to do in Uganda?”
Before the pandemic started, blood donation had been an ongoing campaign. Uganda Blood Transfusion Service teams worked with civic groups, houses of worship, and companies to encourage people to donate blood. But the pandemic had shut down these efforts.
We quickly realized that, if we did not do something, Gabriella would die.
My wife and I asked ourselves, “What do we do?”
We had an anxious family back home and friends who knew about Gabriella's diagnosis. They were calling, asking questions, and wanting to help. We said to ourselves, “Why don't we reach out to a few people to donate blood?”
Kenneth Nganda and his daughter Gabrielle (center), along with blood donors at Uganda Blood Transfusion Services.
Starting a blood drive
My wife is a medical doctor and was involved in visiting schools to teach health topics. She had many connections. We reached out to different groups. There was an overwhelming response. After all, there was nothing else to do because of the shutdown.
We quickly started organizing a blood donation drive. We decided the meeting point would be at the Cancer Institute. Our family and friends wanted to see us and find out how we were doing.
So, they came out. And I remember that the first time about 7 people showed up. These people had walked on foot for quite a distance. Some walked as far as 7 or 8 kilometers. One person even walked more than 20 kilometers (12 miles).
We asked the blood transfusion service if we could bring other people to the Cancer Institute. Overwhelmingly, they said, “Please, if you have others, encourage them to come.”
The word spreads
The first 7 people who showed up for the blood drive went home, opened the messaging app WhatsApp on their phones, and told others about it. These connections are how this whole campaign started. It was absolutely unplanned. It was done out of necessity.
Meanwhile, teams of young people started coming to the drive almost every week. People kept coming. People we did not know. People were bored and wanted to have a purpose in life. They heard about the COVID-19–related deaths. They knew that some children with cancer died because they could not get the blood they needed.
This news rang out. Prominent people spread the news, and it worked. More people came to donate blood.
Naming the blood drive
As the blood drive grew in popularity, we realized it needed a name. By this time, Gabriella was almost 2, and she had started to speak. She was quick with her words, and at that time, she called herself a doctor because she spent so much time with doctors and nurses. She liked to play with gloves and syringes without the needles and pretend she was giving people a shot.
She could not pronounce Gabriella, so she called herself “la-LA-la.” We started calling her Dr. Lalala, so that’s what we named the blood drive, the Friends of Dr. Lalala.
We also decided to be open about her diagnosis. In Uganda, there is stigma about leukemia and severe illnesses. People do not speak about it.
From the beginning, we shared our story with people in our church community and wherever we went. We realized that our daughter is alive today because of people who decided to give blood. They saved her life and the lives of many others.
Friends of Dr. Lalala caught on quickly because the name resonated with people, especially when they understood the story behind it.
Gabriella, or Dr. Lalala as she started to be called, cheered up and thanked blood donors.
Online support group
We also formed an online support group for parents called Ahavah Child Cancer Care Uganda. Parenting a child with cancer can be lonely. It is painful. The road is long. No one should walk alone. You need other people. We can encourage one another on this journey.
Our organization also offers bereavement counseling and support for parents whose children have died. We have counseling because we realized that parents whose children have died often lose themselves. They lose relationships. Counselors can help parents find themselves again.
Life today
Today, Gabriella is thriving in school. She is one of the top 3 students in her class. She loves maths, English, and Swahili. She takes medicine to keep her cancer in remission. She is a little small for her age because of the cancer treatment she received. She is brilliant and bubbly. She loves to play with her dolls.
We are happy, but the pain stays with us. It was excruciating to watch our child go through what she did. There are times I break down and cry.
But we have learned that, out of the pain, there are fruits. I believe we belong to a creator. We are not here by accident.
Our work goes on. We continue our blood drive and raise funds to support families. We continue to inspire other parents.
