Chuszim gets his angel wings
Chuszim Motha (5), a neuroblastoma cancer patient, lost his battle with cancer last Wednesday 27 September. His mother Valdene told the George Herald, "In August we stopped all treatment as we realised he was not responding. I can't describe how I felt as I saw my only child fading away in front of me. He had stopped moving as the pain was just too much for his little body to handle. Chuszim finally closed his eyes in the early hours of Wednesday."
Motha said her son started chemotherapy after he was diagnosed with neuroblastoma cancer in June 2016. Neuroblastoma cancer stage 4 is a disease in which cancer cells form in nerve tissue of the adrenal gland, neck, chest, or spinal cord. It is the third most common childhood cancer after leukaemia and cancer of the central nervous system.
A post on the Superhero Cancer Facebook page sums up the mood of those who knew him and those who had never met him or his family, but followed his courageous battle for survival. "My words escape me when I try and find the right words to say, because Chuszim, you touched my heart so much and it's just hard to think that you are gone, and you are still just a baby. You had your whole life ahead of you, you did not deserve to suffer. Chuszim, the first time I saw your cute smile - wow, you stole my heart, and I will always remember no matter how bad you felt, you always had a smile. I will cherish your beautiful smile forever and a day. Life failed you."
In October last year, Chuszim was a guest of the Reach for a Dream foundation and enjoyed a carefree day clambering around on trains at the Outeniqua Transport Museum. Trains always had a special place in his heart. At the time, Reach for a Dream's local representative, Rene Mc Leod, said, "Reach for a Dream believes in the power of dreams and wants to inspire hope in each child to be able to use it to fight their own personal battle. We spent a magical day away from hospitals and treatment and just had fun." Chuszim's funeral on Saturday 7 September will start at 10:00 at 6
Valk Street, Conville, followed by a service at 11:30 at the St Paul's Anglican Church in Conville.