Since then, Ivan’s days have been filled with IV drips, handfuls of pills, and countless blood transfusions. “I don’t think there’s an antibiotic we haven’t tried yet,” says his mother, Maryna.

Yet even through intensive treatment, Ivan is still very much himself — an outgoing, cheerful boy who loves being around people.

“He just fills the whole room with his presence,” his mother says with a smile.

And then she adds: “Going through all of this alone would be unbearably hard.”

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