BY KATE HALIM
A breast
cancer diagnosis can cause a woman’s life to come to a temporary standstill.
Every other thing fades into the background while she considers her best
options, takes a deep breath, and proceeds.
Then she
keeps on living her life, the best way she knows how. Sometimes overcome with
fear, other times, she is wallowing in depression and self pity, questioning her
existence. At such times, support and words of encouragement remain the key to
snatching these women away from the throes of hopelessness.
In
Nigeria, many women are fighting this deadly disease silently. For some, breast
cancer still sounds like a white man’s ailment, while others don’t know how
devastating the disease is. Many still find it hard to talk about it openly for
fear of being stigmatised. Others are struggling with the huge cost of payment
for their treatment, while yet others are battling depression and self-pity.
Even
though there are no concrete statistics on the number of women affected by
breast cancer in Nigeria, some in the country have taken it upon themselves to
bring succour to these women as well as hold their hands in solidarity and help
them fight cancer to a standstill.
One of
such people is Mrs. Ebun Anozie. Ebun lost both parents to cancer. Her mother
died of cancer when she was seven and her fa- ther followed years later. She is
president, Care. Organization. Public Enlightenment (C.O.PE), a non-profit
organisation founded in 1995 to help in reducing the mortality rate of breast
cancer through advocacy, treatment, research and education.
Recently,
she received a friend of the house, Della Ogunleye, CEO, DDS African Cancer
Support Group in United Kingdom, who con- tributed pocket bras to the survivors
who are members of C.O.PE monthly support group.
Della
noted that the aim of providing the bras for the women is to ease the
embarrass- ment they face each time they go in search of such special bras made
for women who have undergone mastectomy. At the meeting, over thirty women who
have beaten the scourge or are undergoing treatment appeared as normal and calm
as everyone else. The energy they exuded and their positive outlook on life re-
flected on their faces, voices and their cheerful disposition.
For Della
Ogunleye, a 53-year-old breast cancer survivor, for five years, breast cancer
sounded so alien that she refused the initial diagnosis of her doctor. Breast
cancer, to her then, was a white woman’s disease. But reality hit her hard when
it became clear that she had breast cancer.
“In my
head, I was coming for a wedding in Nigeria. I had already bought the ticket
because I reside in the United Kingdom. I wasn’t thinking about the grim
diagnosis I was given earlier. I was only focused on my money and how I wasn’t
going to get it back if I started my treatment. I didn’t know the fatality rate
of cancer then. I was just so naïve about the whole breast cancer stuff,” she
said.
“Cancer
made me aware. It changed my life, but I didn’t allow it define me or my
dreams. It made me feel good and conscious of my lifestyle. It opened a new
chapter in my life. Even when things go wrong now, I take life easy. I come to
Nigeria often just to support other women walking down this road. The joy and
cheerful attitude of these women moved me to tears.”
She added
that contributing her own quota to humanity by helping these women makes her
happy. She explained further: “Many women who have had a breast removed, wear
prosthesis, and then cover it up with specialized pocket bra. It has a pocket
and they put the prosthesis inside it just to make the breasts normal to
everyone. Cancer is not a death sentence. Early detection is key to living life
to the full after cancer. If women attend a forum like this, they get the
strength to move ahead and fight the disease.”
Della
said she remains grateful that she is alive and has had the chance to take her
life in a new direction. She also makes sure she stays busy, “If I don’t, my
mind wanders,” she informed.
Florence
Stevens, who was diagnosed with breast cancer nine years ago, is cancer- free
today. She was diagnosed after her 40th birthday and it was like her life had
come to an end. She was lucky that her family and friends stood by her.
Florence
felt a lump in her breast and went to see an oncologist. She decided on her own
to remove the lump immediately, which was dangerous for her. She had radical
mastectomy, and also had ten courses of chemotherapy, which cost over a million
naira.
The
treatment was immediate because delay meant a slow death sentence, as the
cancer would keep spreading.
She said:
“At a point, I was depressed, but I fought it back with God’s word on long life
and good health. Five years later, another lump was discovered in the other
breast. I was so afraid. Initially, I wanted to have a double mastectomy but I
was discouraged. But the second lump was not cancerous, so there was no need to
remove the second breast anymore. I was happy.”
For
Florence, life now has a new meaning. She decided to stay healthy. Now she
takes a lot of food supplements and antioxidants that prevents food radicals
from forming cancer cells. She is no longer on drugs and she is living well.
Florence
shared her message of hope with other women. She enjoined them to talk to other
people and not die in silence.
“At COPE
women enjoy not only the meetings and free screening but also pay for breast
cancer treatment from donations from kind hearted individual and sponsors who
take care of these expensive treatment.”
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