Brief vom 4.Oktober 2009,
Dear Jaquiline!

I'm Dmitry Akimov, the father of Akimov Leonid, the former patient of Charite clinic from Russia. You used to supported Leonid a lot in Berlin, so it seems to me You remember our family. 

I wanted to write You so many times to tell all about our son - how funny and fast he is. But as usual my letter to You was delayed again and again and now I'm too late - today I can just write You only about his courage and force+ 

We didn't see each other for about 1,5 years and it was difficult but very happy time for us. On the one hand doctors used to said Leonid had no chances to be cured, on the other - we had a Hope.

We tried differ experimental chemotherapy in Moscow and it limited the growth of the metastases in his CNS, but radiation therapy was one of the last hopes. Leonid received the course of 36 Gy in Leipzig (by the way we lived in very cosy R.McDonald's House too there) from November 2008 till the end of February 2009 and came back in Mosow. We knew then that radiation had no success for this tumor and continued the chemo.

These are only facts but during all this time our Leonid felt quite good and we tried to support him (and he supported us so much!!!) as we could. 

We visited a child theatre and rode horses, so often we had cases when being treated in clinic Leonid was allowed to walk for an hour and during this short period (excuse us, doctors!) we visited half a circus performance, went to cafe for piece of his lovely pizza and cup of child cuppuchino, and rode a horse around the circus too+ 

But the disease developed by short steps. In the end of May Leonid was in quite severe condition after chickenpox disease (he caught it from the boy who laid on the next bed in clinic), which transferred to herpes and encephalitis after. He almost wone both chikenpox and encephalitis, but the main disease didn't sleep and developed. Our son used to say: "Mama, don't cry, I hold on, I keep well, I'm brave".

+Leonid has gone in intensive therapy depertment on June 13, 2009... He shew that Human possibilities are really not limited and joy helps to overcome or stop for a time even severe disease, and brave child can fight the disease with wooden sword, riding a horse. Now he has another deals and tasks. I Hope there is one more Angel on heaven+

He was really brave boy - he passed through 36 blocks of chemotherapy, 2 OP, radiation therapy 36 Gy in Leipzig and nevertheless up to these days kept his joyful and open character, his funny jokes, his laugh. It's difficult to find necessary words for me now, but I hope You will remember Leo and his mother as an example of Love and Will to Live. Now besides our usual job in child center "Wonderful child" all the free time we devote to the Charitable Fund "Grant the Life!" where we work as the coordinaators of volontire team which work in our clinic in Moscow. So You see the story of our son changed our own life and now it's difficult for us to live without any help to little onco-patients and their families.

Please, say some warm words from us to all people in Germny who new our family and GREAT THANKS to Your, Sarania and Your other kids personally, 

May be we will meet You some day in Berlin during our work in fund or something other point. Yours Akimovs - Dmitry, Svetlana, Maria, Ivan and Angel Leonid :)

2009		Bild von Leonids Papa, Leonid als kleiner Engel