WHEN forex trader Grace Cheng, 28, found out she had papillary thyroid cancer in January, she cried for two weeks.
But now, in four months' time, she will be jetting off to embrace the New Zealand wildlife.
Never mind that she had undergone an operation after Chinese New Year to remove a lump in her throat and is now on hormone-replacement therapy.
She said: "I can't change what happened but I can change my reaction to it. Getting cancer has actually given me a greater appetite for life."
On her reaction after finding out she had cancer, she said: "Initially, I wondered, "Why me?" I'm young and I thought cancer was something that usually affected older people."
But she decided to find out more about her condition "because the more you know, the less afraid you'd be".
Besides planning for overseas trips and improving her financial-news website, Ms Cheng also wants to raise cancer awareness by speaking about her condition.
Last month, the Singapore Cancer Society held a campaign to highlight the various cancers that afflict women.
Some, like cervical cancer, can be successfully treated if they are detected in the early stages.
The Health Promotion Board's website estimates that one woman dies of cervical cancer in Singapore every four days.
But the medical director of Thomson Women's Cancer Centre, Dr Tay Eng Hseon, 46, said: "Cervical cancer is the most preventable (of all cancers)."
For example, going for a pap smear and getting a vaccination will help prevent the cancer, he explained.
Dr Tay added that younger patients typically have immune systems that respond better to the vaccines.
Madam Siti Fatimah, 36, is one example. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 1999 when she was expecting her fourth child. She remained in hospital for over a year after her delivery to treat the cancer.
She advised women to take advantage of modern medication to protect themselves and stay healthy for their "family and loved ones".
Colorectal-cancer patient Liew Poh Giok, 70, said: "There's no point crying. It's all fated, so I choose to be happy and pass each day as it comes."
