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An unforgettable sightseeing flight: eight-year-old boy enjoys freedom!
A moving sightseeing flight for the boy Johann from Erlangen, who is suffering from cancer, made possible by Dr. Melichar and HULLU e.V.
An unforgettable sightseeing flight: eight-year-old boy enjoys freedom!
It was a very special day for eight-year-old Johann, who suffers from a tumor. On July 24, 2025, he was allowed to fly in a small aircraft over Middle and Upper Franconia. An event that gave him unforgettable moments and deeply moved his family. Dr. Volker Melichar, pediatrician and hobby pilot, had the idea for this sightseeing flight, inspired by a newspaper article about the children's palliative care team with which he used to work at the Erlangen University Hospital. True to the motto “Why not combine the pleasant with the useful?” He wanted to give Johann a break from the sad everyday life.
Johann's sightseeing flight lasted about 30 minutes and gave him the opportunity to see his home village, his house and even his school from a bird's eye view. In addition to Johann, his mother and Dr. were on board. Roman Raming, doctor in the children's palliative care team. The flight route was carefully coordinated with the little passenger in advance so that everything went according to his wishes. The flight started in Herzogenaurach and went via Erlangen to Upper Franconia.
A flying break
When Johann got off the plane, he was overjoyed. “It was one of the best moments of my recent life,” he beamed. Dr. Chara Gravou-Apostolatou, spokeswoman for the children's palliative care center, also described the afternoon as unforgettable. This flying break perhaps left one or two thoughts about the illness behind, at least for a brief moment. Financial support was received by Dr. Melichar is from the committed association “HULLU – Strong Together for Palliative Care Children”, which is passionate about the needs of sick children.
Such experiences are not only important for the individual, but they also shed light on the health care of children and adolescents with cancer in general. A current guideline published by the Association of Scientific Medical Societies (AWMF) emphasizes the need for improved palliative care in inpatient and outpatient contexts. The aim is to optimize symptom control in young patients and increase their quality of life. The focus is on topics such as pain management and shortness of breath, supplemented by advance planning of therapy decisions and the development of effective care structures.
The importance of palliative care
The AWMF guidelines are designed to sensitize doctors and non-medical providers to the palliative care needs of children and adolescents. Relatives and affected families are also part of the target group that should benefit from these recommendations. By increasing the security in recognizing and treating pain and strengthening collaboration between different specialist disciplines, the quality of care should be significantly improved. This shows that it is important to be attentive both in the medical field and beyond and to advocate for the interests of those who are often confronted with serious illnesses far too early in life.
Dr. Melichar plans to kidnap another young patient from the children's palliative care center into the air in July - with the hope of bringing a little lightness to his everyday battle against the disease.