Cancer and a baby girl

Why do newborn babies get cancer?

Are you a parent? Or a grandparent? Or an uncle or aunt? Do you know the parents of a child with cancer?

Even if none of the above, would you help a baby girl with brain cancer on the other side of the world if you had the chance?

Marta Maja Maksic is a baby girl, born in the small town of Sabac, Serbia to parents Marijana and Milos Maksic, February 5th, 2018. She was just 6 months old when diagnosed with brain cancer.

She is now two and has had eight surgeries to date in addition to chemotherapy treatments and radiation. Marta’s mother is not working and her father’s income is not enough to cover the cost of her medical care. They now have to sell their family home to pay for the ongoing medical treatment. Economic conditions in Serbia are not good and medical care is very expensive.

I learned about Marta’s plight when I dropped into the bakery of Rod and Daniela Gavric, Maksic family friends, for a coffee while waiting for tires to be installed on my car in a nearby garage. Rod and Daniela met the Maksic family when they bought an adjacent property in Serbia. Their granddaughter is the same age as Marta and when they heard she was very sick, they pledged to help. It came to my…