What’s childhood leukaemia which killed teen actor of India’s Oscar entry ‘Chhello Show’?

The release of India’s Oscar-nominated film ‘Chhello Show on 14 October won’t be as joyous anymore. The 10-year-old child actor who played an important role in the film passed away after battling with leukaemia.

Rahul was one of the six child actors who are part of the film that is India’s official entry for the international film category at Oscars 2023.

According to a report by CNBC, Rahul’s family held a prayer meeting at his native village of Hapa near Jamnagar in Gujrat on 10 October.

Let’s take a closer look at what childhood leukaemia is and how common it is in India.

What happened to Rahul Koli?

Rahul Koli was diagnosed with leukaemia this year. According to a report by Indian Express, he was initially being treated at a hospital in Jamnagar. After staying at the hospital for two weeks following his diagnosis, he was finally transferred to the Ahmedabad cancer hospital four months ago.

The actor’s father, Ramu Koli said, “On Sunday, 2 October, he had his breakfast and then after repeated bouts of fever in the following hours, Rahul vomited blood thrice and just like that my child was no more.”

Also read: Gujrati film ‘Chhello Show’ is the official entry for 2023 Oscars: Selection process and past controversies explained

The family said that they will watch his movie together on the release day on 14 October after performing his last rites.

Ramu Koli, an autorickshaw driver added that his son was very excited about the release of his film. “Rahul was looking forward to watching the movie on the big screen. He used to say that the release of the movie would launch his future, little knowing that he would die before October 14,” he said.

What is childhood leukaemia?

Leukaemia is a type of cancer that affects the blood. The cancer cells grow in the bone marrow and travel into the blood. It is the most common type of cancer in children.

Bone marrow is the tissue that is found inside the bones of the body. It is where blood is made. When leukaemia cancer cells develop in the body, there is an overgrowth of immature cells which are called blasts. According to Nationwide Children’s, the growth of blasts results in crowding in the bone marrow. This crowding prevents the production of normal blood cells (red and white blood cells and platelets).

Leukaemia is either acute, meaning they develop quickly or chronic which means they develop slowly. Most childhood leukaemia is acute, as per the American Cancer Society. In acute leukaemia, the abnormal cells in the bone marrow grow very quickly.

The cancer is most common in children under the age of 15. In the UK, over 650 children are diagnosed with leukaemia every year, according to Blood Cancer UK.

However, doctors don’t exactly know what causes most cases of childhood leukaemia. It is not thought to be hereditary or contagious in nature. There are some theories that suggest that the environment may play a role in developing this type of cancer.

According to a report by WebMD, doctors think that the risk of childhood leukaemia increases in a child has an inherited disorder such Li-Fraumeni syndrome, Down syndrome or Klinefelter syndrome. The chances of getting affected leukaemia also go up if a child has a history of being exposed to high levels of radiation, chemotherapy or chemicals such as benzene.

What are its symptoms?

The deficiency of blood cells caused by leukaemia can show up in blood tests. More often than not, leukaemia cells enter and invade other areas of the body, which in turn elicit symptoms.

A shortage of red blood cells in a child’s body can cause symptoms like fatigue, feeling weak, feeling cold, feeling dizzy or lightheaded, shortness of breath and paler skin.

White blood cells help the body to fight off germs and when there’s a shortage of white blood cells caused as a result of leukaemia, it might lead to infections that take a long to cure or don’t go away at all. In addition to this, recurrent fevers are also a symptom of leukaemia.

Meanwhile, platelet deficiency can lead to easy bruising and bleeding, frequent nosebleeds and bleeding gums.

Apart from this, symptoms of leukaemia also cause bone or joint pain, swelling of the abdomen and lymph nodes as well as a loss of appetite.

Is there a treatment for leukaemia?

According to Mayo Clinic, the treatment of leukaemia depends on many factors. A doctor usually determines treatment based on the patient’s health, age and how quickly it has spread to other parts of the body.

Common treatments include chemotherapy which uses chemicals to kill leukaemia cells, targeted therapy which uses drugs to focus on specific abnormalities present within cancer cells and radiation therapy which uses X-rays to damage leukaemia cells.

Other treatments include bone marrow transplant which helps to establish healthy stem cells by replacing the unhealthy ones and immunotherapy which uses a patient’s immune to fight cancer.

How common is childhood leukaemia in India?

Dr Gaurav Kharya, a paediatric oncologist at New Delhi’s Indraprastha Apollo Hospitals told Indian Express that around 60,000 to 70,000 children in India, between the age of one and 18 are being diagnosed with Acute Myeloid Leukaemia (AML).

He said, “There was a time when identification and diagnosis would be delayed in India but now the increase in numbers is reflective of the fact that increased awareness among primary care physicians and paediatricians are hastening targetted treatment. Besides, there is a better mechanism to collate data of all paediatric oncology groups which helps in research and finding effective treatment protocols.”

According to a report by Times of India, leukaemia in children contributes to around five per cent of the total cancer burden in India. However, the number is feared to be much higher as most cases go unreported.

With inputs from agencies

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