Splitting up the siblings when one of them needed cancer treatment abroad was the biggest heartache for the Bianco family, but they managed to pull through with the help of Puttinu Cares.

Ten years ago, Gianluca Bianco, then six, needed to be flown to Royal Marsden Hospital to continue receiving treatment for leukaemia. Over one weekend, parents Sandra and Mario had to organise accommodation for Gianluca’s two siblings with relatives in Malta, as they packed their bags to accompany their ailing son.

They spent seven months and a week away from their two other children, but with the help of Puttinu Cares, the Bianco family spent Christmas and Easter together in London.

This was the most heart-breaking thing

“We were told that his chance of recovery was higher if both of us accompanied him. This meant that we had to leave our other two children – aged 11 and 16 – behind. This was the most heart-breaking thing,” Ms Bianco, visibly emotional, told Times of Malta.

Ms Bianco was speaking during the first day of the 60-hour football and volleyball Puttinu Cares marathon at the Marsa Sports Grounds.

Together with her husband and son, she has been volunteering with the support group ever since her son recovered, and feels that she will never be able to repay Puttinu Cares. The Biancos are also supporting other parents going through similar ordeals.

Gianluca Bianco

It all started when Gianluca had just received his first Holy Communion in 2007. He was diagnosed with aggressive leukaemia. 

Following treatment, he went into remission, but the boy was “like a ticking time bomb as we knew that there was a 50 per cent chance of a relapse”, his mother said.

The following summer, his parents took him to hospital as they suspected that he had relapsed.

“As soon as we left hospital, we bought an inflatable mattress and went to the beach as we knew he wouldn’t be able to swim if the leukaemia returned.” No bone marrow donor was found for the child, and he received more chemotherapy. When “things were getting more desperate”, they were told the remaining option was stem cell treatment – but they needed to fly to the United Kingdom over the weekend.

That is when Puttinu Cares stepped in.

Apart from help with accommodation and utility bills among others, the siblings were escorted to London to spend Christmas with their parents and brother.

“Puttinu realised what we needed before we even thought of it,” she said.

The 60-hour Puttinu Cares football and volleyball marathon was kicked off by Nigel, a young boy who has undergone a heart transplant, and President Marie-Louise Coleiro Preca. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli

The family also received support from relatives and the Malta Community Chest Fund Foundation.

Puttinu Cares is appealing for donations to invest in a project that costs between €16 and €20 million, which would accommodate the majority of patients that fly to London for treatment.

More information on how to help Puttinu Cares on phone numbers 7964 7948, 7970 7318, football@puttinucares.org or the Puttinu Cares Facebook page.

Donations of €6.99 can be made on 5061 8939, and donors can also call on 5160 2007 to give €10, 5170 2006 to give €15 and 5180 2008 to give €25.