A Cuban father made a desperate public call on social media this Monday to seek specialized attention for his son Dilan Rodríguez Rivera, a boy suffering from bilateral retinoblastoma —a cancer that affects both eyes— whose health has critically deteriorated in recent weeks.
Yandy Rodríguez shared her request for help on Facebook, detailing Dilan's medical situation. Dilan will turn three years old on November 18 and has spent nearly his entire life battling the illness.
Bilateral retinoblastoma was detected when the child was about six months old. Since then, he has received intravenous chemotherapy with vincristine, etoposide, and carboplatin, in addition to several laser treatment sessions in both eyes, without the doctors being able to control the progression of the disease.
Weeks ago, the right eye began to show marked and progressive inflammation that foreshadowed more serious complications. Shortly after, Dilan developed seizures, episodes of low blood pressure, and a general decline that necessitated connecting him to mechanical ventilation and admitting him to intensive care.
A computed tomography scan revealed a tumor in the suprasellar region of the brain, leading the medical team to consider the possibility of trilateral retinoblastoma—a very rare complication with a very poor prognosis—although there was no definitive histological confirmation.
On November 3rd, due to hydrocephalus and elevated intracranial pressure, the child underwent a neurosurgical procedure to have a ventriculoperitoneal shunt placed, which allows for the drainage of excess fluid from the brain.
This Tuesday, Dilan remains hospitalized at the Matanzas Pediatric Hospital, a provincial center that has reported complaints of staff shortages last October. His father is requesting a transfer to the Juan Manuel Márquez Pediatric Hospital in Havana, the national referral center for pediatric oncology, but he claims that the efforts have not yielded any results.
"I have called and reached out to all the institutions and organizations that I have access to, seeking help, guidance, and a concrete response. However, up to this moment, no one has provided me with a definitive solution," Yandy Rodríguez wrote.
"I receive responses, they tell me that the situation is being assessed, but days go by and we are still here, not knowing when or how the transfer will be resolved," he said.
"I am not asking for privileges or anything beyond what my son needs. I am requesting that his situation be addressed, that someone take responsibility for providing a concrete response, and that a decision so important for a child's life not be delayed any further. As a parent, I cannot wait indefinitely while my son's health is at stake," he confessed
"I ask that this post reaches the people, authorities, and institutions that can intervene and help us achieve this transfer. To anyone who can share this post, help spread it, or convey our case to the relevant parties, I will be sincerely grateful," he expressed.
In addition to the transfer within Cuba, Yandy Rodríguez requests international humanitarian assistance to take Dilan preferably to the United States or Spain, where he can be evaluated by specialists in retinoblastoma and pediatric neuro-oncology. He acknowledges that he does not have the resources to manage that transfer and asks for the support of organizations, churches, foundations, or anyone who can intervene.
Families of severely ill children are turning to social media to apply pressure for transfers that the healthcare system does not address promptly, as happened with a six-year-old girl with a tumor in her eye who, in 2024, was finally treated in Havana after her mother publicly raised awareness about her situation. Another little girl was taken to Italy in 2021 also after her mother highlighted her situation in independent media.
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