Serezha from Makeevka (Donetsk region, Ukraine)
is a happy and inquisitive toddler who enjoys playing with his blocks and toy tool set. Most of all, he loves playing
on a swing set. Unfortunately, Serezha doesn’t get to go to a playground often, as he spends much time in the hospital.
Even when he is feeling better, he has to be very careful to avoid respiratory infections as they are very dangerous for
children with the disease Serezha has – cystic fibrosis.
Serezha was born on February 2, 2008. Soon after his parents brought him home from the
hospital, they started suspecting something was not usual about their baby boy: he had constant problems with
digestion, gained weight very slowly despite good appetite, had difficulty sleeping because of frequent
tummy aches. Mom Oksana recalls that when she kissed him she could always taste the salt on his skin.
Unfortunately, Serezha’s pediatrician dismissed her concerns and assured her that her little boy would
just grow out of it. He didn’t. At six months of age, he developed cough that didn’t improve with time.
Serezha was hospitalized in Regional Children’s Hospital, where the doctors ran genetic tests and diagnosed
him with cystic fibrosis.
Serezha has a severe form of the desease, his lungs as well as the pancreas, liver and
intestines are affected. This past summer, he spent several months in the hospital due to a lung infection,
and presently his doctors are struggling to bring intestinal symptoms under control.
To grow, maintain good health and ward off life-threatening lung infections, Serezha needs many
different medications, including enzymes to help him digest food and absorb nutrients, mucolytics to loosen mucus in
his lungs, medication called Ursofalk to treat liver disease caused by cystic fibrosis, and expensive antibiotics.
He also needs medical equipment, such as a nebulizer to administer aerosolized antibiotics and mucolytics directly to
his lungs, pulse oximeter to monitor how well his lungs are working, The annual cost of medications alone adds up
to several thousands of dollars, not including the costs of physiotherapy, specialized vitamins and medical equipment.
Some medications, like mucolitic Pulmozyme that works well for Serezha, are not available in Ukraine and Serezha’s
Mom had to ask parents of cystic fibrosis patients from neighboring Russia to purchase them and ship to Donetsk.
When Serezha is hospitalized, his parents have to pay for the medications and most diagnostic procedures.
Unfortunately, the state is providing only minimal care for cystic fibrosis patients. From all
the medications, only the enzyme Creon is covered but it is often only available for a full price in commercial drug stores.
The amount of monthly disability payments Serezha’s parents are entitled to barely covers two packages of Ursofalk.
Serezha’s Mom Oksana had to leave her job as an esthetician to care for her son. She is a real fighter and is doing
all she possible can to keep him healthy. She is constantly looking for information on available treatments, and is
working on organizing a parent support group for parents of young cystic fibrosis patients in her native Donetsk region. As there are no cystic fibrosis clinic where he lives,
he needs to travel to a specialized hospital in Moscow, Russia at least every six months in order for the doctors there
to run necessary tests, treat infections and develop a treatment plan that Serezha's pediatricians in his home city follow for the
next six months. He is not a Russian citizen, and his family needs to cover the cost of each hospitalization that runs between $2000 and $3000 depending on particular
diagnostic and treatment procedures that his doctors prescribe.
Presently, Serezha's Mom is raising him alone. Despite help from her sister's family and the family of Serezha’s Dad,
their financial situation is dire, and they cannot afford the cost of Serezha's hospitalizations in Russia and his medications.
We would like to help this beautiful young boy get appropriate health care and live a long a healthy life.
We need help from all of you to do it. Please, join us!
News
September 19, 2011.In the past few months, Serezha has suffered several bouts of lung infection as a result of the respiratory viral infections.
Fortunately, the family still has all the necessary medications from their last trip to Moscow, and it has so far been possible to
successfully treat those infections at home, under the guidance of the doctors from Moscow. Daily physiotherapy with Mom helps Serezha feel well.
Serezha is growing up a happy and active little boy, and he sends his greetings to everyone in a short video.
Serezha’s doctors believe will not need to return to Moscow clinic this fall unless his condition worsens. During his last hospitalization,
they ran all the necessary tests and developed a treatment plan that his Mom and paediatricians in Ukraine can follow until the next visit. Serezha
will need to go to a regional children’s hospital in Donetsk to get the bacterial culture tests. Serezha’s Mom will use the funds remaining from their
trip to Moscow clinic to pay for this planned hospitalization in the regional children’s hospital and for Serezha’s medications for the rest of the year.
Recently, we have also sent Serezha a package with vitamins Aquadeks and nutritional supplement Scandishake. We are grateful to everyone who
continues to support Serezha.
March 31, 2011. Serezha suffered several bouts of severe lung infections over the course of the past winter, and therefore it
was really important for him to come back to CF clinic in Moscow for tests and treatment this spring.
Thanks to generosity of the Help Journal donors, we were able to pay for his treatment, as well as for travel for Serezha and his Mom, Oksana. Serezha is in Moscow since the last week,
and will likely go back home next week.
He has been treated by IV antibiotics, and right now his doctors are satisfied with his lung function. Unfortunately, the disease is starting to take a toll on his heart - Serezha is developing
a common complication of cystic fibrosis, pulmonary heart disease. To help control it, Serezha's doctors have prescribed several heart medications that he will have to take while he is at home
in Ukraine. They have also prescribed antibiotic fluomycin to combat lung infections, and adjusted the dozes of other medications he is taking daily. Please, help us cover the costs of
those medications.
As maintaining healthy weight is a challenge for Serezha but
is necessary for his overall health, the doctors are recommending that he continue taking nutritional supplement ScandiShake daily. Please, if you or someone you know is traveling to Ukraine from US or
Canada, we would greatly appreciate it if you took at least some ScandiShake with you for Serezha and other Ukrainian children suffering form cystic fibrosis. It is not currently available in
Ukraine but can be easily purchased without a prescription in North America. Please, let us know and we will be happy to order it and have it shipped to your address.
Serezha's Mom Oksana tells us that despite all the IV treatments and other procedures this brave little boy undergoes, he is doing great and actually enjoys his time in the hospitaal -
he has made many new friends among doctors, nurses, volunteers and other patients. He is also enjoying his brand new remote-controled red Jeep!
September 15, 2010. Since September 2, Serezha has been hospitalized in Department of Pulmonology of Moscow Institute of Pediatrics. Doctors are running various tests in order to
determine the best course of treatment for him. We thank all of our donors who made it possible for the Help Journal to pay for his hospital stay and for transportation expenses for Serezha and his Mom.
July 25, 2010. Unfortunately for many cystic fibrosis patients in Ukraine, there are presently no specialized cystic fibrosis clinics
in this country. On recomendation of Serezha's doctor as well as the US pediatritian that consults the Help Journal, his parents sought admission to the nearest
clinic that specializes in treating children with CF in order to address his recurring health problems and establish a course of treatment for the nearest future.
The good news is that inpatient CF clinic in Moscow Institute of Pulmonology has agreed to admit him in September. The bad news is that since Serezha is a foreign national,
his family will have to pay for his stay at the hospital and cover the costs of tests and medications. While we won't know the exact amount needed, the estimate is around $2000.
Again, we ask for your help in raising funds for Serezha's treatment.
June 20, 2010. Thanks to your continued support, we were able to purchase necessary medical equipment, including a nebulizer and a pulse oximeter
for Serezha. Serezha's parents, and all of us at Help Journal thank you for your generosity.
Serezha from Makeevka (Donetsk region, Ukraine)
is a happy and inquisitive toddler who enjoys playing with his blocks and toy tool set. Most of all, he loves playing
on a swing set. Unfortunately, Serezha doesn’t get to go to a playground often, as he spends much time in the hospital.
Even when he is feeling better, he has to be very careful to avoid respiratory infections as they are very dangerous for
children with the disease Serezha has – 
In the past few months, Serezha has suffered several bouts of lung infection as a result of the respiratory viral infections.
Fortunately, the family still has all the necessary medications from their last trip to Moscow, and it has so far been possible to
successfully treat those infections at home, under the guidance of the doctors from Moscow. Daily physiotherapy with Mom helps Serezha feel well.
Serezha is growing up a happy and active little boy, and he sends his greetings to everyone in a short video. 
