Four relapses❗HELP❗Piotr has been battling acute leukemia since childhood❗

The Nijmegen team. The beginning of a long journey

Piotr was still a baby when he was diagnosed with Nijmegen syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that compromises the immune system and carries a high risk of cancer. That was when fear first appeared, although no one could yet predict its future scale. His parents knew only that their son would live in the shadow of a threat that could not be controlled or predicted.

The cancer appeared when Piotr was four years old. Acute lymphoblastic leukemia required immediate, intensive treatment. Before his body began to respond to chemotherapy, the disease had already robbed him of his basic functions. He stopped walking. He stopped talking. His childhood began to disappear before it had even really begun. The treatment lasted two and a half years. It was a time of constant vigilance, fatigue, and fighting for each passing day, in which life managed to remain under control.

First reprint

In 2013, the disease returned for the first time, without warning and without mercy. The cancerous changes affected his testicles. The decision to remove them completely was the only way to save Piotr's life.

For his parents, this moment was one of those that remain etched in their memory forever, because it was not just about health, but about a future that had suddenly been taken away. The loss of the possibility of having children became the price that had to be paid for their son to live. To this day , Piotr's mother refers to this moment as the most dramatic part of the entire treatment process .

However, Piotr's body had no respite. A fistula formed in his abdominal cavity, from which pus oozed for over a month. At the same time, he struggled with chickenpox, retinitis, and bilateral purulent otitis media. Each successive illness added to the burden, as if his body was constantly being put to the test.

The treatment lasted four and a half years. It was exhausting, full of pain and complications, but it ended in remission. Hope returned, although by then it had a different flavor—cautious, mature, marked by experience.

Second recurrence and transplant

In 2019, the disease reappeared. This time it was aggressive and had spread throughout almost his entire body. Decisions had to be made immediately. Chemotherapy was started, and Piotr was then qualified for a bone marrow transplant in Wrocław.

The transplant took place on December 20, 2019. In January, the family returned home. For over a year, they were able to breathe easy. There was remission. There was calm after the storm. There was life, which, at least for a moment, ceased to revolve solely around illness.

CAR-T therapy. The race against time

In 2021, the third diagnosis came. Another recurrence, again widespread. CAR-T therapy turned out to be the only chance. The treatment was not reimbursed, and its cost exceeded PLN 1,300,000.

Thanks to the people who decided to help, the necessary funds were raised. Piotr received treatment on June 1, 2021, on Children's Day. It would be difficult to find a more symbolic moment. Once again, remission set in. Once again, there was hope that this time the disease would truly recede.

Fourth reprint. Another milestone

In March 2025, the fourth recurrence came. It manifested itself as a ten-centimeter tumor in the thoracic spine. Once again, every hour counted. Chemotherapy was started immediately.

The decision was made to undergo a second CAR-T therapy. Once again, the family had to ask for support. Thanks to the help of many people, Piotr received his second therapy on October 14, 2025.

Reconstruction

Today, Piotr is alive. That word says it all. Another victory has been achieved at the cost of enormous effort and losses that require time, patience, and daily work. Piotr cannot walk on his own. He requires intensive rehabilitation and constant care from specialists. Every day is a lesson in living in a body that has been a battlefield for years.

At the same time, his father is battling amyloidosis and is undergoing treatment himself. Two unequal fights for life are taking place in one family. Father and son, day after day, try to maintain balance in a reality that rarely gives them respite.

"As a mother and wife, I do everything I can to make things easier for them. My only dream is for them to be stronger than the disease that has already taken so much from us."

Growing up in the shadow of illness

Piotr never went to school like his peers. Illness interrupted his education and robbed him of the opportunity to grow up normally. Today he is twenty years old, and his real school has been life, patience, and perseverance.

He used to love soccer. Today, when his body no longer allows him to play, he has found peace in fishing. He says it teaches him patience and humility—two things he knows better than anyone else.

What support is needed

The funds raised will be used for further monitoring of Piotr's health, frequent trips to specialist centers, intensive rehabilitation, tests, medications, and daily needs related to treatment and returning to as much independence as possible.