Большая трагедия маленькой Кати

"Hi Santa Claus, I'm 17 years old. Of course, I don't believe that you exist at all, but maybe I'm wrong. Help me grow up, and I'll believe that you really exist...".

With these lines began a letter that I was shown by an acquaintance, the owner of a toy store. This New Year they traditionally set up a letter box for wishes to Santa Claus (this is how clever parents in our area knew the New Year wishes of their kids). The letter from Katya Melnikova was the only one with a wish that turned out to be impossible for the sales clerks to fulfill - Katya asked them to help her grow up. I don't know what brought me to the store that day. Probably fate. This letter fell into my hands. In neat calligraphic handwriting this little adult girl was asking for a miracle.
The letter had an address and phone number. I easily found their house. All this time Katya lived on the next street.The door was opened to me by a tiny girl.
"I'm Katya, what's your name? " so childish...
This child reeked of warmth and light. And she told me so movingly that she was weaving angels out of beads...
Sink's syndrome. This is what prevents Katya from growing up. This is a very rare genetic disease, which is caused by severe skin, neurological and joint manifestations.
In Katya's case the main manifestations were systemic inflammation and joint deformities. Only hormone-steroid therapy could cure these aggravations, which caused the impairment of the ability to grow. This vicious circle led to the fact that Katya stopped growing at the age of 6.
Weak immune system and severe pains in her legs prevent Katya from going to school and making new friends, and Katya feels the difference from her peers especially strongly. The girl is not only seriously ill, but also lonely.
I had no idea what to do to help her.
I want to thank everyone who responded to my request to try to find ways to fulfill Katusha's New Year's wish.
First of all, to the specialists of Ministry of Health of the DPR and doctors of Donetsk Regional Children's Clinical Hospital, who joined their efforts for the sake of a little sick lonely adult girl, who is still desperately believing in miracles.
To my friend and trustee of our Foundation - Alexander Shekaev. Without his support we would not have been able to pay for two weeks of treatment for Katusha and her stay in the hospital.

The end result is that Katusha was thoroughly examined. The telemedicine consultations resulted in the recommendations of two specialized clinics in St. Petersburg. They are familiar with the syndrome. The specialists of both clinics recommended a number of additional examinations to make the final conclusion, which would give the complete assessment of Katusha's condition. There is no 100% certainty that Katya will start growing. But this is a small ray of hope that the disease progression can be stopped, and one child in this world will believe in miracles again...