'I faced death every day'
Every five days, a woman in Singapore dies from cervical cancer. A survivor tells of her regret for not seeking early treatment.
Fri, Oct 31, 2008
The New Paper
By Ng Wan Ching
SHE now gives this advice on cervical cancer: Go for regular Pap smear tests and don't delay treatment.
Madam Siti Fatimah Anon (above), 35, is speaking from painful experience. Nine years ago, after suffering persistent headaches, she was diagnosed with second-stage cervical cancer.
She was seven months' pregnant with her fourth child at the time.
Her doctor's advice was to have an abortion, then surgery to remove the cancer and start chemotherapy.
It was a huge shock to the young woman, who was still in her mid-20s then. Despite the advice, Madam Siti continued with her pregnancy.
'It was a boy and I really, really wanted another boy,' said Madam Siti who already a son and two daughters.
Her baby boy was born a month early.
But even after the birth, Madam Siti, who had her first child at 17, did not seek treatment for her cancer.
'I stayed at home for a year because I could not believe that it was happening to me - that I had cancer,' she said.
In particular, she wrestled with the idea that her womb needed to be removed.
'I felt I was too young not to have a womb, It also meant I could not have any more children,' she said.
Finally, after one year of waiting and suffering from pain and discomfort in her abdominal area, Madam Siti dragged herself to the doctor.
She underwent surgery to remove her womb and then went on chemotherapy treatment, which proved to be extremely rough going.
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| Graphic: ST |
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'I ended up staying in hospital for a year as I was constantly sick from the medication,' she said.
Her husband, a delivery assistant, took a year off to look after their children.
Her mother and the Singapore Cancer Society supported her family financially.
But it wasn't just a tough time financially. It was an emotionally draining time for her as well. 'Every day I faced death,' she said.
She stayed in a six-bed ward at the Singapore General Hospital.
Many times, patients whom she would talk to in the morning didn't return. 'Then I learnt that they had died,' she said.
Whenever her husband visited, she would beg him to take her away from it all. Her husband did what he could to encourage her. So did the ward nurses.
Slowly, she felt herself gaining hope.
'Each time I saw death, I stopped feeling fear. Instead, it turned into an encouraging factor for me to stay on and fight the disease,' she said.
She also had her lovely baby boy to live for, so she fought hard to get well. After one year, she was well enough to go home.
Not yet completely well
Unfortunately, the cancer came back six years later in 2006. Her ovaries had to be removed and she has been on hormone treatment.
She cannot tell whether she is completely well yet. She now suffers from swelling in her legs and shortness of breath.
'Of course I regret now that I waited so long before going for treatment. My prognosis might be better, my cancer may not have come back, who knows? That's why I now tell people not to wait and to go for screening,' she said.
She also tells women to get themselves vaccinated. There are two new vaccines against cervical cancer, approved by the Ministry of Health, available here.
This is a breakthrough in science where a woman can vaccinate against cervical cancer for the first time.
Yet, statistics this year show that only 1 per cent or 4,000 women out of 357,500 aged 10 to 24 years in Singapore have been vaccinated against the cancer.
Women in a recent survey said that they had no time to go for Pap smear screening and vaccination.
'Don't wait and then regret like me,' said Madam Siti.
THE TESTS
Regular Pap smear screening can help detect cervical cancer early.
Vaccination can help prevent it.
The Singapore Cancer Society provides free Pap smear screening at both their clinics in Enggor Road and Boon Keng.
EVERY 2 days
A woman in Singapore is diagnosed with cervical cancer.
EVERY 5 days
A woman in Singapore dies of cervical cancer.
UP TO 80%
Of all sexually active women, including those who have stopped sexual activity, will have human papillomavirus (HPV) infection at some point in their lives. Cervical cancer, the sixth most common cancer among women here, is spread by HPV through skin-to-skin sexual contact.
This story was first published in The New Paper on Oct 29, 2008.
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