"Superman, Batman, Spiderman and Guzmán"
"They say I'm a hero, I am weak, almost insignificant; if I could do what I have done, imagine what could be done with all of you together".
Mahatma Gandhi
He is not insignificant but his is small because he is only 3 years old...
He is not weak but has been weakened because he has leukaemia...
It's not a bird, it's not a plane, it's...
Guzmán, an extraordinary hero, every day. Since the 8th of November 2010 he has confronted this cruel diagnosis with a smile on his face which, with the help of his trusty sidekick and sister Martina, touches all those around him.
His Dad, José recounts the day to day stories of Guzmán's life in a blog entitled "One in one hundred thousand" (Spanish). It is a calendar of hope and life that reminds us that childhood cancer exists but that together we can annihilate it. Guzmán has a curious way of doing it; he eats churros to get over punctures and giggles with syringes filled with water, fired at anyone who passes under his window. Above all the superhero Guzmán fights against the worst villain there is: leukaemia, but with an energy which inspires all that meet him.
In October 2010, Guzmán and his fmaily were with some friends in Mallorca and whilst there he suffered from a cold. As his father José says "it was something normal for some with a 5 year old daughter already, some days with fever, others no and telling us... ‘I don't want to go to school'...nothing extraordinary". It was a few days later when the all too common situation for parents of small children turned into something that no child (or parent) should have to go through; a clear verdict of Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia.
"I continue to believe that Guzmán has been lucky, lucky to be born when he was, with all the medical advances that exist today. He is also lucky that he is surrounded by so many people who are doing so well and will do well" explains José. Guzmán is going to be ok. We are going to fight with him. He is going to help us. We are going to help him and together we are going to grow and all of this will be something positive for each of us".
Today, Guzmán is overcoming all the obstacles with flying colours. He laughs, he plays with his trains and learns to live at home and in the hospital. His parents say "Guzmán continues to teach us that we don't have to change, nor assume anything, just to understand and learn that he has to be where he has to be and to learn to be happy in the hospital". He is lucky that he has a guardian angel, which his sister saw once and drew for him.
Being a superhero with his sister, who knows guardian angels, we think he will get over his leukaemia... little dude, you can do it!!
For more information:
If you want to discover the day to day of Guzmán's life then don't forget to see "One in a hundred thousand" (Spanish).
If you want to know more about Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia, click HERE.
Become a member of the cure for leukaemia and other haematological malignancies, HERE
Find out more about bone marrow donation, HERE