I am a breast cancer survivor and I am sharing my journey to encourage those who are suffering from cancer (especially breast cancer) or know someone who is suffering from cancer.
I will talk about the following aspects in my fight against cancer: my spiritual faith, diet, emotional and mental wellbeing, support from my friends, family involvement and financing the medial bills.
My cancer treatments involved the following phases: chemotherapy (six cycles over eighteen weeks), lumpectomy surgery and radiation (four weeks).
This is my story.
How I discovered my cancer.
One evening in the late January of 2023, I happened to feel a small lump on my left breast as I was turning myself around in bed.
The next day, I told my husband about it and he advised me to consult our family doctor to rule out anything that might be serious, which I did.
After examining me on 30 January, the doctor felt that the lump was more likely to be a benign cyst. However, to confirm this, he referred me to a breast specialist for further consultation.
I underwent mammogram screening, ultrasound scan and biopsy. On 8 February, my breast specialist, Dr. Melanie Seah, informed me that the biopsy results showed that I had grade three triple positive breast cancer. Triple positive breast cancer is more aggressive than other breast cancer. Additionally, a higher-grade number (grade three as compared with one or two) means a faster-growing cancer that is more likely to spread. The saving grace for me is that triple positive breast cancer is generally more treatable compared with triple negative breast cancer.
Is my time up?
When I was going through those initial tests, I went to God in prayer. I am a Christian. I asked God, ”Is my time up?” I felt that I needed to know how to prepare for and respond to the worst possible outcome.
That was when I heard God’s voice in my heart saying “rise up and fight.” I knew then that I had to overcome battles that were coming.
After confirming my cancer results, Dr. Melanie explained to me the surgical options of either going for mastectomy (removal of the entire breast) or lumpectomy (removal of the cancer cells while preserving the breast). The upside of mastectomy is the more likelihood that radiation therapy is not required after the surgery. Since my cancer tumor was on my left breast and above my heart, there was a risk of the radiation damaging my heart due to radiation exposure which may result in radiation-induced heart disease (RIHD). The downside of mastectomy would be having to emotionally cope with having the breast removed. On the other hand, radiation therapy after lumpectomy was necessary to kill any cancer cells that might remain and reduce the risk of the cancer reoccurring.
Whichever the options chosen, I had to go through chemotherapy before the surgery. Hence, I could make this decision after my final chemotherapy session.
At this time, I heard the voice of God assuring me that “this (the cancer diagnosis) is not a death sentence.”
I want you to give thanks for chemotherapy
Nevertheless, I struggled with having to go through chemotherapy. Like many others, I heard about the various potentially severe negative side effects of chemotherapy: loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, loss of hair, fatigue, sore throat, diarrhea, constipation, etc.
“Can I don’t go through chemotherapy?” I asked God. “Can you heal me miraculously?”
“I will heal you through chemotherapy. Endure through and you will be healed.” This was what I heard God saying to me.
Hence, I prepared myself mentally for the treatments. I started to look for and bought supplements which I believed will nourish my body in preparation for chemotherapy. In the end, I could not consume any of the supplements that I bought after consulting my doctors. The supplements contained ingredients (one being grapefruit) that potentially could interfere with my treatments. Even the only supplement that my doctors allowed me to consume also resulted in an increase in liver enzyme and I had to stop consuming it.
I had also considered traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) treatments alongside chemotherapy but this was strongly discouraged by my doctors. They advised that I should postpone any TCM treatments until after the chemotherapy treatment.
My first unexpected battle came on 13 February. I had to go through another biopsy (stereotactic biopsy) as my earlier mammogram screening showed that there were calcified deposits in both my breasts. The doctors wanted to determine if these deposits had cancer cells as well. After the procedure, while waiting at the lift lobby with my husband to return home, I suddenly lost consciousness. My husband told me after the incident that he was speaking with me at that moment and he noticed that I was staring at him without any response. Then I started to fall towards him. He was caught off-guard in an awkward position and fell together with me. I was rushed back to the clinic.
The doctor discovered that I had a blood clot in the area where the biopsy procedure was done. This surprised the doctor and nurses as it was a very rare occurrence. The doctor tried to remove the hematoma with the largest syringe that they had but that was unsuccessful. They had no choice but to let the clot dissolve on its own over time. I was admitted to the hospital for observation to ensure that my bleeding had stop. I was told that it could take between six to nine months for the clot to fully dissolve. And so, I had a large patch of blood clot showing around my right breast for a few months.
While recovering in the hospital, a friend of mine from church visited me on 14 February. This friend had about a week earlier told me that God gave her a word to be shared with me. The word was “coat.” During her visit, I took the opportunity to ask her what the word meant and she said that she was unsure but it was like a donut being coated with sugar. My husband was amused and joked that I could not eat sugar coated donut as a cancer patient.
I was discharged from the hospital on 15 February.
On 20 February, my oncologist, Dr. Lynette Ngo, started me on a six-cycle chemotherapy treatment that will last eighteen weeks. As I was going through that first session, I heard God saying to me: “I want you to give thanks for chemotherapy”
“What?! Give thanks for chemotherapy?” Puzzled as I was, I prayed to God, “since you said so, I will do so”
The chemotherapy will not harm your good cells
During that first session, God reminded me about the word that was given to me through my friend, “coat” and the story in the Old Testament of the Bible when the Jewish people at that time were protected from harm by remaining in their homes and with blood from sacrificed lambs smeared on their doorposts.
God then taught me how to pray, “Now you pray that every part of you, every tissue and every cell that are good are coated with the blood of Jesus Christ and the chemotherapy drug will not touch the good cell. It will only touch the cancer cell.”
I was so thankful upon hearing this and that broke every apprehension that I had about chemotherapy. As I prayed, I believed that I was protected from any harm to my body by the blood of Jesus which was shed on the cross for me. I went through the whole chemotherapy light-heartedly and filled with faith.
The chemotherapy started to yield very positive results from the early stage. After the first cycle (three weeks), Dr. Lynette told me that she could not feel the tumor and that the ultra-sound also showed that the tumor had shrunk.
On top of this, I also had no other side effects other than loss of hair and the occasional diarrhea.
Yes, I had little sides effects
Initially, I had diarrhea, which was manageable. However, this stopped as I progress on with the chemotherapy. Throughout the treatment, I was able to eat, sleep and do my daily chores without much difficulty. A lady’s hair is her crowning glory. I had hoped that I would not lose my hair because of chemotherapy. The oncology clinic had a cold cap and scalp cooling system that could help reduce hair loss. After I tried the cap on my head for less than five minutes, I could not handle the cold and stopped. I generally do not handle cold well. Eventually, my hair became very dry because of the chemotherapy. They became so entangled that my husband had to cut them off and a friend helped to shave off the remaining hair.
Even though I had to rest more often as the chemotherapy impacted my stamina, I did not feel weak. On my final session, Dr. Lynette told me that my immunity was not affected and that my body was very strong.
In fact, my friends told me that aside from the hair loss, there were no other telltale signs that I was suffering from cancer. They commented that my voice was still as strong.
Food as medicine
The first thing that I had to manage in overcoming cancer was my diet.
My diet had to change so that the cancer cell would not have an environment in my body to thrive. I also needed to make sure I was well nourished to withstand any potential effects of the chemotherapy treatments.
Since sugar feeds cancer cells, I cut sugar and any food with added sugar from my diet. Items such as pastries, cakes, soft-drinks, and anything which contained simple carbohydrates like white rice and white bread had to be avoided.
God impressed upon me to change my breakfast. Hence, I consumed items such as quinoa, buckwheat, walnuts, pumpkin seeds, black sesame seeds, dried mulberries, and pure nut butter. These are anti-inflammatory food that can help fight cancer growth.
During my chemotherapy and radiation treatments, I made sure that I stayed hydrated by drinking coconut water a few times each week and barley water daily.
A staple item that I consumed daily before breakfast on empty stomach was organic carrot juice which I juiced using slow juicer. Carrots contain nutrients and antioxidant contents that can slow the growth of cancer cells.
A challenge that I had to address was what I was going to eat for my lunch and dinner during my treatments since I would not have the strength to cook my own meals. I had to consume food which were fresh, preferably hot, unprocessed, and free from harmful ingredients to avoid any food contamination since there was the risk of my immunity being lowered due to the treatments. This ruled out most packed food from hawker centers and coffeeshops.
My husband started to research on food catering services which offered healthier options. After scouring numerous catering websites and scrutinizing menus, he finally found a caterer which specialized in catering for those going through surgery and cancer treatments. I also liked the fact that this caterer offered pork instead chicken (as was the case with other caterers) as the meat protein dish. I was not keen in eating chicken as I could not be sure that the chicken used by caterers were hormone-free. I normally limit my consumption of meat in my diet. However, I knew that I needed to consume enough protein during my treatments since extra protein is needed to heal tissues and fight infections. The caterer we chose was Kang Le Kitchen.
The price of the meals was high. However, the quality of the ingredients was very good. For example, the rice provided included basmati rice, rice berry, quinoa, barley millet, tri-colour grains, etc. Fish included cod, salmon, grouper, threadfin, etc. Heeding my doctors’ advice, I also selected their non-TCM herbs menu. The quantity of the food was more than enough for my husband and I. I had meals provided by Kang Le for almost five months. They had played a crucial role in my fight against cancer.
Food for my soul
From the start of my treatment, I mentally geared myself up for my fight against the cancer and to withstand any possible side-effects of the chemotherapy. Not long after, I heard God saying to me that I needed to grieve and cry for the loss of my health. And so, I did. As humans, it is not wrong to be afraid, sad, or even angry. It is detrimental to our wellbeing when we bottle up these emotions within ourselves or pretend that everything is fine. Expressing our feelings to friends, family members and God is the best thing that we can do to help us manage our mental wellness.
After releasing my emotion, I felt a sense of relief and moved on to continue with my fight.
One of the things that I made a conscious effort to do was to avoid reading anything that might create a sense of hopelessness or fear in me as I worked towards overcoming cancer.
Instead, I started to read a book written by Derek Prince, a theologian and bible teacher, entitled “Declaring God’s Word.” In one of his other books, Derek described a time in his life when he was sick while serving in the British army during World War Two in north Africa. Due to prolonged exposure to desert sand and the sun, he suffered from chronic eczema and had to spend a year in the hospital. He was unable to recover despite all the treatments and medications given to him. Then he came across a passage in the Bible which described God’s Word in the Bible as medicine for the physical body.
“My son, attend to my words; incline thine ear unto my words. Let them not depart from thine eyes; keep them in the midst of thine heart. For they are life unto those that find them and medicine to all their flesh.” Proverb 4:20-22, Jubilee Bible 2000
That was when he started to read the Bible three times a day after his meals, taking God’s Word as medicine.
Inspired by what I read, I too started to read the Bible three times a day as my medicine.
Declaring God’s Word by Derek Prince (Amazon Affiliate Link)
Friends in need are friends indeed
From the moment that I was diagnosed with cancer, friends and family members rallied around me. Every week, a regular group of friends from church would meet with me through Zoom meetings for updates and prayers. To minimize any risks of infections, I had to limit physical group gatherings.
Nevertheless, I never felt alone throughout my journey. I received endless messages of encouragements and prayers all the time and especially when I was receiving chemotherapy. Practical help came in the form of driving me to treatments when my husband was recovering from his heart attack when I was undergoing chemotherapy, buying suitable clothing to aid my after-surgery movements and arrangement to speak with another cancer survivor who went through similar treatment.
These social connections were crucial for me as I face the biggest fight of and for my life.
Penang after completing my chemotherapy and radiation
Involving our children
Initially, my thought was to shield my children emotionally from worrying for me. I did not want my conditions to disrupt their lives. I told them that they should go on with their lives normally.
Then I heard God saying clearly to me not to go through this fight alone and that I should not keep my children out of my journey. I needed to mentor them to deal with the knocks in life by involving them in my fight.
We decided that every Sunday night, we would gather as a family to pray for me and my husband. During these weekly sessions, I would take the opportunity to share with them what God was teaching me and update them on the progress of my treatments. A few weeks into these sessions, God led me to tell the kids that they should not just pray generic prayers, but ask God for specific words or visions for me. This led to my youngest son having a story of his own to tell out of this experience:
That experience spurred him to be baptized in our church on 28 Oct and his story was also shared during the church service.
Of course, the children were roped in to help me with housework. And we continued to celebrate many special occasions.
Matters of the heart
Throughout my chemotherapy treatment, I was undecided on whether I should proceed with mastectomy or lumpectomy once my chemotherapy ended. I remained concerned about the potential harm to my heart due to exposure to radiation if I opted for lumpectomy even though I was leaning towards this procedure.
When it was time to make the decision, I heard God saying to me, “just as I have shielded you during chemotherapy, I will shield you from radiation.”
God led me to contact my friend from church to share about my concern. She was unaware of my predicament. She told me that when she picked up my call, she saw the word “lumpectomy” in her mind without knowing what the word meant. These two assurances helped me to make my final decision and I went for my lumpectomy surgery.
The tissues that were removed during my lumpectomy surgery were tested for any remaining traces of cancer and there were none! I was very relief and it was time to moved on to my radiation therapy.
In preparation for the radiation therapy, very precise measurements and calculations were done to map my breast area and the location to deliver the radiation. I was also taught and practiced how to hold my breath for the radiation sessions to pull my heart even further back. My radiation oncologists, Dr. Choo Bok Ai, compared the locations of the radiation target spot and my heart when I held my breath. He told me that my heart would be far behind from the targeted area, hence it will not be affected by the radiation.
I completed 4 weeks of daily (Monday to Friday) radiation therapy uneventfully.
Financing my fight
When I first knew about the diagnosis, the first thing that came to my mind was the potentially high cost of the treatments. However, my husband assured me that my hospitalization and surgery as well as critical illness insurance will cover the cost of my cancer treatments. I was very glad with this assurance as that gave me the options to choose the doctors and the hospital that I was comfortable with and I was eager to receive timely treatments. With the financial concerns out of the way, I could focus on getting well. And that peace of mind was important for my recovery.
My husband and I are thankful for the sound advice given by our insurance consultant in our younger days. Unknowingly at that time, the policies that we bought then played such critical roles decades later in helping us to overcome our illnesses.
We are also very grateful to our current consultants, Chris Zheng, and Karna Wee, who painstakingly helped us navigate the intricacies of making different policies claims even though none of the policies were bought through them.
while my husband and I chilled
Renewed and next chapter
At the time of this writing, my doctors have considered me to be cancer-free.
During this journey, I observed first-hand many others who were suffering from cancer. I will never forget the occasion when I saw how tired looking one patient was at the hospital. I also became more aware of people I personally knew or were connected to my circle of friends who were suffering from cancer as well as other chronic diseases such as stroke, autoimmune and eczema.
During a conversation with a nurse attending to me, she commented on how more people were suffering from cancer today and that cancer will become a common disease un the years to come. In recent years, cancer is the number one cause of death in Singapore
I have benefited from the care and expertise of many healthcare professionals in their respective fields and other helpful health and wellness products and resources. I want to pay it forward by advocating positive lifestyle changes to prevent and overcome chronic diseases. Together with my husband, we will share what we have learned from our research and health and wellness professionals through our social media channels. Please follow us on:
Website: https://wellnessrestored.sg/