The Child Cancer Scam: 4. The contract
World of Secrets
BBC
4.7 • 765 Ratings
🗓️ 22 December 2025
⏱️ 28 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
A mother from Ukraine signs a contract, hoping that it will help her young daughter. Viktoriia has a brain tumour: her story is plastered all over social media despite her family’s request that the video they made isn’t shared.
Olena says she wasn’t given time to read the contract properly. When we look more closely, it makes for shocking reading. Now she knows the truth, she wants to stop the scammers, agreeing to help us go undercover.
Season 10 of World of Secrets, The Child Cancer Scam, is a BBC Eye investigation for the BBC World Service.
Please note, the image is being used for illustrative purposes only and the child depicted is a model.
Reporter and Presenter: Simi Jolaoso Additional reporting: Jack Goodman and Ned Davies Writer and Producer: Neil McCarthy and Rob Wilson Sound design: Andy Fell Executive Producer: Rebecca Henschke Commissioning Senior Producer: Sarah Green Commissioning Editor: Jon Manel
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | BBC Sounds Music Radio Podcasts |
| 0:05.0 | So we're approaching the border between Poland and Ukraine and I never thought this would be the kind of story that would bring me to Ukraine of all places. Can I collect your passport? |
| 0:22.6 | Yes. |
| 0:23.6 | But this is where I found the family of a little girl called Victoria, who appears in this recent Chancellor Tikva video. |
| 0:41.2 | Her family lives in Chenevsi in Western Ukraine. |
| 0:48.8 | Olena Fisovar gives me a warm, welcoming hug. |
| 0:55.0 | She has striking black and green eyelashes and red hair. |
| 1:00.0 | It's her day off from the hospital, where she works as a nurse. |
| 1:04.0 | Her daughter, who they also call Vikusa, is five years old. |
| 1:09.0 | She has a long scar on her bald head and is recovering from her third brain tumor operation. |
| 1:18.1 | When she sees me, she steps behind her mother and starts to cry. |
| 1:26.4 | Olena lifts her up and comforts her and then leads me into their living room that's full of toys. |
| 1:33.9 | On the table, I pull out my laptop and I show Elena the active online and social media campaigns for her daughter. |
| 1:42.0 | So this is a Facebook page that they created and it says Victoria when hope is not enough. |
| 1:49.0 | And you can see it has 4,000 followers and nearly 4,000 likes as well. |
| 1:55.0 | And they created it in multiple languages. |
| 1:58.0 | So this is the English version and I found a French one and one in Czech and other languages as well. |
| 2:06.7 | Olena frowns. |
| 2:08.2 | Her gaze fixes on the screen. |
| 2:10.9 | There are so many comments from people who donated money, wishing them well. |
| 2:15.9 | I've scrolled down and we're now looking at a post from August 16th, |
| 2:21.3 | 2024 and in it is you and Victoria sitting on a bed. |
... |
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