Near-fatal illness strengthens Estonia's Niina Petrokina
Niina Petrokina When seeing the exuberant joy that Estonia’s Niina Petrokina displays on the ice, as well as the landings of her effortless triple jumps, one would never have guessed […]
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"I was diagnosed with the most severe stage, requiring constant blood transfusions to maintain the minimum required level of blood cells for life," Petrokina recalled. "My hemoglobin was so low that it was difficult for me to just walk and climb stairs. I was getting hematomas. I could forget about training."
She urgently needed a bone marrow transplant, but no suitable donor was found. As the athlete's condition worsened, the doctors decided to go for an immunosuppression therapy.
"I had a 50/50 chance," Petrokina said. "On the whole, I was in the hospital for five months without any physical activity. At most, I just walked along the hospital corridor in the evenings, because I had no strength to do more."
I'm so glad she has pulled through this thus far! She has been selected for two GPs and will compete at Shanghai Trophy and Lombardia Trophy this season!