Nicholas, a 32 year old patient  from Romania, was admitted to our  medical center on April 2, 2009. Nicholas and his wife Madalina have experienced tremendous ups and downs in the process of search ing for or better and effective treatment. He suffered from Hodgkin’s disease, which is a type of malignant tumor originating from the lymphatic system. What was worse, he was diagnosed with progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML).

After some setbacks, the couple came to China for the latest treatment in the world. To everyone 's joy, the therapeutic effect is quite satisfactory. During the treatment, Cezar, Nicholas' best friend in China, constantly encouraged him and do him a favor as far as possible. Madalina, Nicholas's wife, also shared their experiences during the treatment at our medical center.

  O poveste romaneasca- Povestea dlui Nicolae Florescu

Internati in data de 2 aprilie 2009, Nicolae impreuna sotia sa Madalina, au avut parte de urcusuri si coborasuri ingrozitoare in cautarea unui tratament pentru forma de cancer a lui Niki, un tanar de 32 de ani, din Romania, care sufera de Maladia Hodgkin’s, o forma de cancer limfatic, care in ultimul timp, datorita sistemului imunitar deficitar a fost complicat si agravat cu leucoencefalopatie multifocala progresiva, facuta din cauza activarii virusului JC, asa cum a fost diagnosticat de medicii de la spitalul Rambam din Israel.

Calatorind atat in Israel, iar acum in China la Beijing, tanara familie a cautat prin lume cea mai buna terapie si rezolvare pentru problemele de sanatate ale lui Niki.

Dupa acceptarea si internarea in clinica  - CTC (Cancer Therapy China)- cuplul a inceput sa vada rezultate foarte incurajatoare si imbucuratoare ale terapiilor  medicale pe care Niki Florescu le-a facut. Pe toata perioada internarii ei au fost ajutati si sprijiniti de bunul prieten al lui Niki - Cezar. In interviul urmator, Madalina va impartasi experienta lor dupa cea de-a treia saptamana de cand se afla internati in clinica noastra.  

 1. Can you describe your husband's condition before coming to CTC?

Before we came here, my husband had difficulty in walking alone for that he had a big problem with his balance; he wasn’t able to get up and lie down by himself; he could hardly speak and express his feelings clearly. He wasn’t able to dress and undress by himself. He also didn't know when he needed to use the bathroom.Besides,  he cannot fall asleep without pills.He also  had a memory problem previously and it did not improved obviously even after 12 days of treatment. Nicholas couldn't understand everything that was happening around him, he wasn't able to recognize people, friends or some of our familly members. He wasn't able to take care of himself in daily life - brush his teeth, take a shower,  shave,  prepare food and eat by himself.

(In this picture, Cezar supports Nicholas to prevent him from falling) 

1.1. Puteti descrie starea de sanatate a sotului dumneavoastra inainte de internarea la CTC?

 Inainte de internarea in clinica sotului meu ii era foarte greu sa mearga singur, fara a fi sprijinit de cineva pentru ca isi pierdea echilibrul, nu se putea urca si da jos singur din pat, vorbea  si pronunta cuvintele extrem de greu, nu-si putea exprima sentimentele, nu se putea dezbraca si imbraca singur, fara ajutor, nu simtea nevoile fiziologice avand incontenenta urinara severa. Tot timpul avea miscari, foarte nervoas, tremurari ale mainilor si picioarelor, isi musca degetele de la maini si unghiile si nu putea sa adoarma noaptea fara a lua pastile de somn. Avea si inca mai  probleme cu memoria, nu poate constientiza tot ce se intampla in jurul lui, nu isi mai aduce aminte si nu isi  mai recunoaste toti prietenii sau rudele. Nu stie si nu isi aminteste cum se fac lucrurile zilnice : sa se spele pe dinti, sa faca dus, sa se barbiereasca, sa isi pregateasca masa sau sa manance singur. 

2. How did you hear about CTC, and why did you decide to come to this center?

We heard of this center from a friend who is a doctor from China and now lives in Romania and he saw Nicholas before and he give us the first chance with his illness and then he recommended us this clinic as he believed CTC was the only one that could really help Nicholas. We decided to came here because when we were in Israel, those doctors didn't gave Nicholas any chance of surviving this neurological virus on his brain, for more than 6 months. But, fortunatelly, God had and still has other plans for Nicholas and with us too.

2.1.Cum ati auzit de clinica CTC si cum v-ati decis sa veniti aici?

Clinica ne-a fost recomandata de un prieten, medic chinez, stabilit in Romania,care l-a consultat pe Niki inainte, fiind singurul care ne-a dat o sansa reala pentru insanatosirea lui, spunandu-ne ca se poate face bine, dar doar aici, in Beijing pentru a fi  tratat doar de catre medici chinezi  si intr-o astfel de clinica.

Ne-am decis imediat sa venim aici, datorita faptului ca medicii din Israel ( de la Spitalul RamBam din Haifa),  nu  ne-au mai dat nici o sansa de supravietuire, mai mult de 6 luni, datorita afectiunii neurologice, de care ei,  l-au diagnosticat. Dar, din fericire, Dumnezeu a avut si inca are alte planuri pentru Niki si pentru noi. 

3. Which treatments is your husband receiving?

After one week of investigations and blood tests, chest CT, abdominal CT and MRI and a lumbar puncture the doctors decide to start the tratament. They give Nicholas a daily morning intramuscular injections and infusion for brain nutrition and also he receives traditional Chinese medicine for cancer. 

3.1. Ce tratament primeste sotul dumneavoastra?

Dupa prima saptamana, in care a fost supus la multe analize de sange, cat si diferite teste, cum ar fi CT abdominal, CT de piept, RMN, o ecografie cu ultrasunete, dar si o punctie lombara pentru testarea lichidului cefalorahidian si confirmarea sau infirmarea existentei virusului JC, doctorii au inceput administrarea unor injectii intramusculare si perfuzii pentru hranirea sistemului nervos, dar si perfuzii de medicina traditionala chineza pentru cancer, o forma de chimioterapie usoara.

4. This is approximately your third week at CTC, what results are you beginning to see?

However, the treatment is still at the beginning stages, but we know now for sure that Nicholas will recover very well and sooner that we thought.  

(In this recent picture, Nicholas stands confidently on his own)

4.1. Aceasta este a treia saptamana de cand sunteti aici, care sunt rezultatele care incep sa se vada?


Desi este a treia saptamana de cand suntem internati la CTC si dupa doar 12 zile de tratament, rezultate incep sa apara. Sotul meu si-a imbunatatit vorbirea si comunicarea, merge bine acum, singur, echilibrul este foarte bun, cu toate ca sunt momente in care il mai pierde datorita faptului ca se grabeste, dar comparativ cu saptamanile trecute, cand se intampla sa piarda echilibrul isi da seama si se sprijina de ceva imediat.

De asemenea, a inceput sa ceara sa se duca la toaleta. Dar cum tratamentul este abia la inceput si decurge atat de bine, suntem siguri ca Niki isi va revenii mult mai repede decat ne gandeam. 

Honestly, we did not think about that when we decide to came here. The most important thing for us, was  Nicholas' chance here in China to be ok again, his health was our most important purpose. It’s true that outside of the hospital it is hard to manage because the language it is a real problem, but inside the hospital we find people that are so nice and kind with us and help us a lot with absolutely everything we need. China has an interesting culture and, yes, very different from other countries', the things you see here, the customs and the usual daily things are something unique. Althought we cannot visit anything,  we heard that Beijing, it is an huge and wonderfull city, and we hope that after Nicholas recover we will have the time to discover and to prove that this is true. 

5.1. A fost dificil sa veniti intr-o tara cu o cultura atat de diferita de  a Romaniei?
 

Sincer, nu ne-am gandit deloc cand ne-am decis sa venim aici. Obiectivul nostru principal a fost sanatatea lui Niki si sansa reala pe care el o are la aceasta clinica de a se vindeca. Este adevarat ca, in afara spitalului este destul de greu sa te descurci, limba fiind un impediment imens, dar aici, in interiorul clinicii, am intalnit oameni care au fost deosebit de amabili cu noi si ne-au ajutat in tot ce am avut nevoie. China, are o cultura interesanta si da, foarte diferita de alte tari, lucrurile pe care le vezi aici, obiceiurile, chiar si lucrurile obisnuite, cotidiene sunt unice. Desi nu am putut visita nimic, am auzit ca Beijingul este un oras imens si minunat si speram ca atunci cand Niki se va simti bine sa putem descoperi si confirma aceste lucruri.

6. What do you and your husband most look forward to doing after he finishes his two months of treatment?

 First of all, we are so anxious to go back to Romania and  enjoy spending time with our little daughter, Maria, who is 5 and 1 ∕2 years old and who already misses us very much, and we miss her so much. We want for Nicholas to have a normal life, to take care of his work, to be able to have a vacation with our familly and our best friends, to take care of himself as he did before and any other things that any normal healthy young man like to do. 

6.1. Ce va doriti cel mai mult, tu si sotul tau, sa faceti dupa ce se vor termina aceste 2 luni de tratament?

In primul rand, ne dorim sa ne intoarcem cat mai repede acasa,  ca sa petrecem timpul impreuna cu fetita noastra Maria, care are 5 ani si jumatate si careia ii este deja foarte dor de noi si noua de ea. Ne dorim ca Niki sa aibe o viata normala, sa se poata ocupa de munca sa, sa putem petrece vacantele cu familia si cu prietenii nostri buni, sa poata avea grija de el cum o facea inainte si sa poata  lucruri, pe care un tanar sanatos si le doreste sa le faca.