December 4 (RIA Novosti) - A life-saving search is under way for an 11-year-old girl suffering from leukemia who has not been seen since her mother removed an intravenous line and walked her out without permission last week from the hospital where she was receiving care in Arizona, according to police.
"We're talking about an 11-year old girl who can't take care of herself," Phoenix police Sgt. Steve Martos told television station KPHO.
Hospital officials say the girl – whose name is Emily – could die within days if she isn’t found.
Emily has leukemia and had been getting chemotherapy treatments at the Phoenix Children’s Hospital for about a month.
One arm has been amputated because of an infection, and medical workers had put in a chest catheter connected to an intravenous (IV) line.
The catheter was scheduled to be removed this week, and could cause a fatal heart infection if it’s removed improperly or left in place too long.
"If she contracts an infection, it really could just be a matter of days that could result in the young girl's death," Martos said, according to The Associated Press. "It's pretty serious."
Surveillance cameras show Emily and her mother leaving the hospital.
Police have been hampered in their search for the girl by US health privacy laws that prevented them from releasing the parents’ names. But the girl’s father, who is a citizen of Mexico and has a US resident alien identification card, was stopped by border patrol workers as he crossed into Arizona over the weekend.
Police say he was driving a different vehicle from the one that was waiting at the hospital for Emily and her mother, and provided no information as to the girl’s whereabouts. They have released the parents’ names publicly in the hopes that someone can help locate the girl.
Authorities speculate Emily may have been removed from the hospital because her parents were concerned about paying the bill.
The parents have not been charged with a crime but could be if they fail to get medical attention for her.
