This Diwali, St. Jude is ‘a blessing’ for Aditya

Last December was a particularly difficult time for little Aditya. 

It began with an unrelenting fever. The monsoon had ended in India and mosquitoes were rampant, so doctors initially thought 4-year-old Aditya had dengue fever. But blood tests quickly confirmed Aditya had cancer, specifically acute myeloid leukemia (AML), a cancer of the blood and bone marrow.  

Aditya’s parents, who had traveled to India from East Tennessee for a family wedding, were shocked. The diagnosis came just weeks after they had celebrated Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights. A time of prayer, family gatherings, dances in bejeweled silks and feasts of cardamom-spiced sweets. A time to drive out dark forces and welcome the light of prosperity, health and happiness. Cancer was a most unwelcome intruder.

They returned home within weeks of the diagnosis, just after Christmas, and began chemotherapy at a local hospital.  

Because of how Aditya responded to his first rounds of chemotherapy, doctors recommended bone marrow transplantation to reduce the risk of relapse. He was referred to the Transplantation and Cellular Therapy Clinic at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, where he underwent additional chemotherapy as part of the conditioning regimen for his transplant. 

Bhargav, Aditya’s father, had attended college in Memphis and was familiar with the pioneering research and patient care at St. Jude. He said that the referral was a step toward “something hopeful.”  

Aditya underwent his bone marrow transplant in April. His mother was his donor. St. Jude has been a pioneer in haploidentical transplants, like the one Aditya received, which make transplantation far more accessible for patients who do not have a fully matched donor.

Through it all, Bhargav said he has been impressed with his son’s undampened optimism. Even after a difficult afternoon of medicine and needles, he tells the nurses he loves them and offers a warm smile.  

He is 5 years old now and enjoys building blocks. His thick black curly hair is returning, and he is excited about the day he can pull it back into a bun. The family returns for monthly clinical visits, traveling the 7 hours to Memphis. The trip can be exhausting but Bhargav said they only have to look at Aditya’s resilience to keep going.

“He has given us strength to keep moving forward,” his dad said. 

As the family approaches Diwali this year, Aditya’s health is much improved, but they’ll keep the celebrations simple. 

This year, as in years past, they gathered for prayers to the Hindu god Ganesha to remove all obstacles in their path. This year, they are also thankful to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. 

“St. Jude has given us hope in a really difficult time,” Bhargav said. “The doctors, the nurses, they’re continuously working to make sure Aditya has everything he needs. It’s a blessing to have St. Jude.”