Cancer has affected many people on my father’s side of the family. Because of this, my mum always encouraged me to have regular check-ups. In 2019, at the age of 39, I had my first mammogram. They found a small lump and told me simply to keep monitoring it.
The following year, during Covid, I needed to see a doctor and decided to have another mammogram while I was there. The results came a few days later. My GP told me that I had a small tumour.
I panicked
We immediately had to decide who to see and who would look after me. We first decided to consult a general surgeon, who recommended that I see a doctor specialising in breast cancer, Carol-Ann Ben, in Johannesburg.
At that moment, I felt a little relieved. I felt sure that everything would be okay because I knew I was in good hands. Within just three days, I already had an appointment. We went to Netcare Milpark Hospital.
The doctor immediately arranged everything. The following day, I had a contrast-enhanced MRI and an appointment with the plastic surgeon. We also decided on the date of the operation straight away: it would be 15 days later.
Everything happened so quickly. The day of the operation arrived and, fortunately, everything went well. After about an hour, I was already out of the operating theatre. I felt fine. I had no pain.
Fifteen days later, I received the final pathology results.
It was another blow.
The tumour was aggressive and, considering my age — I was 40 — the doctors recommended six months of chemotherapy, followed by radiotherapy. It wasn’t easy to accept.
But deep inside, I knew one thing: I wanted to continue living my life. I promised myself that I would fight with everything I had and with every treatment available to me.
I prepared myself for chemotherapy mentally as well. I talked to myself and kept repeating:
“I am in good hands. Whatever happens, I have good doctors who will find a solution.”
I returned to Limpopo and chose Dr Moyaba as my oncologist. I started my treatments and, fortunately, I never experienced nausea or vomiting. On the day of chemotherapy, I took medication for the following three days, which helped me feel well.
With time, I learned to listen to my body and understand how it reacted to the treatments. I allowed myself time to rest and never pushed myself too hard. I also tried to eat as well as possible, following a diet that would help me maintain my energy and strength.
After six months of chemotherapy, I started radiotherapy.
That phase went well too. Looking back at everything I went through, I believe one thing helped me tremendously: a positive mindset.
That doesn’t mean I wasn’t scared. I was. It means choosing, every day, not to let fear take over. I had decided that I was going to fight. With medicine, with my doctors, with my family, with the people I loved and, above all, with myself.
I wanted to live.
