Julia Oyefunke Fortune, author of
'Chronicle of a Cancer Survivor' and a
volunter for cancer and legislative
ambassador for the American Cancer
Society, tells the story of her battle with
cancer and her campaign against the
disease.
December 13, 2007 is a day I would live
to remember. It was the day I was
diagnosed with breast cancer. The
revelation was like a thunderbolt.
Although the sun was shining, its glare
was not enough to illuminate the
darkness that enveloped my world. I
was shaken to the marrow.
Confusion, denial, anger, fear, all set in.
I wondered if it was all a bad dream, a
terrible nightmare. My mind was in
turmoil. I was in a daze. It was scary, it
was real, and it was ugly.
Although just a preliminary
examination, there was a glimmer of
hope that a confirmatory test would
overturn the initial outcome, but, deep
down in my heart, I knew my life would
never be the same again.
*Julia Oyefunke
I didn't pretend to be too naïve not to
admit, at least to myself, that my
journey into the terrifying world of
cancer had begun.
A second mammogram only confirmed
my worst nightmare. My journey into
the cold, dark world of cancer had
indeed begun. But I had a resolve:
It wasn't going to be a one-way journey.
I would return.
From then: it was from one referral to
another, from one oncologist to another,
and from one evaluation to another.
A personal disease
Cancer was no newcomer to me. As an
experienced entrepreneur, I already
knew of one associate or distant relative
who had succumbed.
Many friends and acquaintances had
battled the disorder, so, in more ways
than one, I was wise to the warnings. I
knew about breast cancer long before it
knew me.
Before my diagnosis, I had done my
research. I visited websites and learned
all the essential step-by-step
information on performing self-
examinations. I kept on top of the
cancer statistics, mentally noticing
researchers estimated a 3.5 percent
increase in breast cancer cases alone.
I kept track of survivor rates and knew
that no less than 2.4 million women
supposedly won the fight against
cancer every year. Regularly and
religiously, I did all the right things,
performed the breast self-examinations
and always looking for signs of a
tumour and was almost paranoid. But
as a survivor, I never lost hope.
I know how alone cancer makes you
feel. Even if you have a world of
supporters, cancer is still a very
personal disease; it takes hold of your
soul and can make or break you. That
choice is yours and yours alone to
make, but no matter how bad the
situation may seem, no matter how
hopeless you may feel, there is always
something you can do about it, even if
it is as simple as learning to be at peace
with your fate.
Road to recovery
My road to recovery didn't start too
well, but I fought gallantly and won.
There were diagnostic drugs to take. I
asked myself that if I used all those
drugs, of what benefit would they be to
me? Will it benefit by 10 percent, 15, 20
or 80 percent? Will the cancer come
back? Will it spread? More questions
than answers.
I knew there were tools that can detect
cancer but doctors in Nigeria are not
using them. The typical treatment is
radiation and chemotherapy. These are
terrible; they are brother and sister and
are killers. I deviated from radiation and
chemotherapy because my body was
already exhibiting the symptoms and
side effects of using them, even without
using them, so what would have
happened if I now took them? I would
have gone real fast. The hospitals here
(Nigeria) don't really test the people as
thoroughly as required. I checked
myself for vitamin D deficiency, my
bones were weak, my joints were weak
and the side effects of chemotherapy
would have attacked the bones.
Role of faith
Cancer visited me uninvited, so I had to
figure out a way to deal with it. My faith
played a major role. From Day 1, I said,
'Lord, you know I have four children,
Adeyinka, who turned 31 this year,
Adeola, 26, Adedoyin, 25, and Adebola,
18'. I said, 'Lord, just hear my prayer.
I'm asking for just three things, that is
when I will know I will live long. First
thing is You will let me see my
grandchild, give me that privilege'. That
has been granted. My grand child is
three years old.
Then I said, 'Lord, You will let me
witness and participate in the white
coat ceremony of Adeola', who went to
medical school last year. I was a proud
mother at the ceremony. Third, I said,
'Lord, you will allow me visit the country
I come from. I owe that country
something'. I said, 'God use me as an
instrument to remove the covering on
my people's eyes about this disease. I
want to make an impact in Nigeria'.
Diet war
I want to plant anti-cancer foods, to let
people know what they should eat. I'm
teaching people to grow these foods
even in their houses. I want to win them
away from the cancer causing foods
that they are ingesting now. Nigerians
are copying American diets and that is
why cancer is increasing. Cancer does
not like sodium which is salt. Cancer
does not like sugar, and all these pasta
and snacks we eat turn to sugar. So
there is need for the education about
what to do.
I have done studies to know that when
you change your diet, cancer can
regress.
Doctors know what to do, but do not do
it, except for a very few. When
Nigerians go down with cancer, they
run to America, yet there are 7.5 million
misdiagnoses due to medical errors in
the US alone every year. Yet we rush
there, pay for everything, take the
chemotherapy and die.
Advocate of cure
But for me it is more of being an
advocate to force the government to do
the right thing, which is to improve the
infrastructure, spend money on
research, and embrace, alternative
medicine. Instead of condemning, let us
embrace them. Cancer has been around
for centuries yet there is no cure. Where
is the cure going to come from anyway?
Cancer is complex. Two people can have
the same type of cancer but react to it
differently. For some people, cancer is
ready to kill them. But for others, it's a
call to action for survival.
Sent from my BlackBerry wireless device from MTN
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