As the shelling intensified near her village of Novoolenivka, 12-year-old Margaryta Karpova prepared to leave her home, donning child-sized body armor and a bright orange helmet. The terror of parting ways with her father, who stayed behind to protect their house, filled her heart. This moment came after Russian troops advanced within a mile of her small village, forcing her and her mother, Liudmyla Karpova, to join the mass exodus of over a million civilians escaping the Donetsk region.
Upon reaching temporary accommodations in western Ukraine, however, their ordeal was far from over. Margaryta began experiencing severe pain, leading to a devastating diagnosis: rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancer primarily affecting children. Now, in the capital city of Kyiv, she is waging a personal battle against this devastating illness as the war continues to take a toll on her homeland.
“Life has stopped,” her mother remarked with sorrow. “The only thing that matters now is saving my child's life.” Despite the challenges, the Karpova family found solace in reuniting with Margaryta’s father and accessing the necessary medical care in Kyiv, even after the catastrophic destruction of the city’s largest children's hospital by a Russian missile last July. Their resilience shines through as they confront the dual challenges of armed conflict and health crises, reflecting the ongoing plight of countless families in war-torn Ukraine.
