‘I want to show fellow patients that, after childhood cancer, there is still a whole world full of adventures at your feet.’
Back to the fall of 2019. Marleen does not feel well, she does not feel like herself. ‘I was on a sailing trip with school and noticed that I had less energy than usual. I also started having problems with my eyes. I saw less and less, and sometimes my vision even disappeared completely for a moment. I could not place those symptoms, but cancer was the last thing on my mind.’
Chemotherapy and quarantine
It did turn out to be cancer: Hodgkin lymphoma, a type of cancer of the lymphatic system. An intensive treatment period of six months followed. ‘In May 2020, I had my final scan and we assumed the cancer was gone. Unfortunately, a few weeks later I heard that it had come back. Once again I ended up at the Máxima Center and received chemotherapy, which made me very sick. I was constantly exhausted and tired. I was in tenth grade and really wanted to move on to the next year so I could stay with my friends in class. I tried to keep up with my schoolwork as best I could, but it just did not work. In the end, I had to repeat the year.’
‘What made it even harder was that COVID spread rapidly during that time. I was vulnerable and was not allowed to go outside. Friends could not visit, and neither could my sisters. They were already living on their own, and it was too risky for me to see each other in person. That is why my sisters once went into quarantine for ten days, so that we could go on vacation together for a week. I found that very special.’
Ultimate freedom
Despite the intense treatments, Marleen emphasizes that there were also beautiful moments. ‘During the summer, I received immunotherapy, which made me feel relatively well. That is when I got a lot of energy from sailing, for example. I would go to Friesland and get on the boat. Once a day I had to get an injection from my parents on shore, but apart from that, during those days I felt ultimate freedom in my sailboat, gliding across the Frisian lakes.’
After she was truly able to complete treatment in November, Marleen picked up her life again as quickly as possible. ‘I immediately started playing field hockey again, for example. It helped me regain energy and feel like myself again. That took quite some time. I had lost more than 15 kilograms and had lost my hair. Slowly but surely, things got a little better every week, until about six months later I felt: yes, I am back. To a certain extent, because the illness did leave mental and physical traces. For example, I have a somewhat weaker immune system and find it harder to concentrate.’
Clipper Ocean Race
That does not stop Marleen from doing special things. This spring, a unique sailing adventure is on her calendar. ‘I am taking part in the Clipper Ocean Race, a sailing race in which eleven yachts sail around the world in ten months. The crew members come from different countries and, except for the skipper and first mate, have no professional sailing experience. For the first time, a boat is participating with the logo of the Princess Máxima Center on it: the Perseverance. The team raises awareness of childhood cancer and raises funds for the Princess Máxima Center.’
A sponsor with a strong commitment to the Princess Máxima Center makes it possible for survivors of childhood cancer to sail as crew members. ‘I am one of eight survivors who will sail a leg of the race. I have already trained for a month in England, and in April I will board the Perseverance in Seattle. We will sail to the Panama Canal, pass through it, and then head north. About a month and a half after departing from Seattle, we will arrive in Washington. I am really looking forward to it. This is once in a lifetime.’
A world full of adventures
‘With my story, I want to show fellow patients at the Máxima Center that there is still a whole world full of adventures waiting for you after this difficult period is over. Until then, my advice is: accept all the love and especially all the gifts and chocolate bars you receive from everyone. Draw energy from the things that matter to you and keep faith in the future. My story shows that there will be a time when you can go after your dreams.’
Also read:
- ‘I’ve rediscovered my identity and learned what I’m still capable of.’Cherine (35) was 10 years old when she was diagnosed with bone cancer. She had to choose between several intensive treatments: a year of chemotherapy in the United States in the hope of saving her leg, amputation, rotationplasty, or removal of her knee and thigh muscles. She chose the latter. Now she visits the LATER outpatient clinic at the Máxima and works there as well.
- ‘Sometimes I try to explain to my classmates how I feel, but they don’t understand the pain.’Froukje (15) was two years old when she was diagnosed with leukemia. Although that was a long time ago, she now feels more than ever how her illness still affects her. She doesn’t always feel understood. Together with her mother, she shares her story.
- ‘She is happy and living life the way a nine-year-old girl should.’Fiene was just four years old when a large tumor was discovered in her chest and abdominal cavity. It turned out to be a neuroblastoma with multiple metastases. An intensive treatment process followed. In 2021, Fiene received the Flower Bead. How is she doing now? Her father Jan shares their story.