Randy Mutua, a 9-year-old boy, was playing with his friend when he got a leg fracture that led his parents to take him to hospital a couple of times, after which, he was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma.
Osteogenic sarcoma is cancer of the bones.
His father, Anthony Siku narrated that Mutua died on March 9, 2019, just three months after he had been diagnosed with cancer.
Reports by The Standard indicated that the 9-year-old boy was fond of skating and playing football. It is reported that on July 27, 2018, Mutua hurt himself and could not walk while he was playing with a friend.
His father narrated that he was unable to walk after the incident.
"I took him to a hospital in Umoja where he was given some painkillers and an ointment to apply and we went back home," Anthony stated.
However, a week later, the boy still complained of persistent pain and his father took him to a hospital in Fedha, where an X-Ray was conducted and revealed that he had a fracture in his left tibia.
Anthony narrated that the hospital advised that a full cast be put on his leg.
"We went to Mama Lucy where the casting was put and Randy went back to school in crutches," he noted.
Mutua was in and out of hospitals a couple of times, with one time a doctor prescribing him painkillers and antibiotics after they noticed that the leg was swollen.
Mutua's father, however, decided to have a second opinion and went to the Metropolitan hospital where he saw an orthopedic, bone specialist.
"The doctor stated that what he was suspecting could only be confirmed through an MRI," Anthony continued.
The MRI was done at Mater on December 10, 2018 and the results, which were received after a week, confirmed that Mutua had osteogenic sarcoma.
“When we took the same X-ray to Nairobi Hospital, the radiologist just took one look at it and he could tell what was wrong yet this is the same X-ray used to put a cast on his leg. Maybe if this was discovered on time something would have been done,” stated Caroline Siku, Mutua's mother.
On a Saturday morning, Mutua woke up and complained he was unable to pass urine at night. Antony prepared him quickly and put him in the vehicle, ready to rush him to hospital.
“When we were ready to leave, I asked him if he is okay, he said: I don’t know and those were his last words,” Anthony recalled.
