The book features a compilation of heartfelt stories of cancer survivors and caregivers, and contains insights on living with cancer, dealing with a cancer diagnosis, treatment, as well as long-term survival issues.

FMT speaks to three of these cancer survivors to learn more about their experiences.

Hibatullah Tun Abdul Rahman was only 25 years old when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. She received the news on Valentine’s Day of 2015 – only one month after her father had passed away.

She would subsequently have a total of six surgeries over the next seven years, in addition to chemotherapy and radiation therapy.

Today, the 32-year-old baker is cancer-free. “What really helped me was having a good support system,” she told FMT.

Apart from leaning heavily on her family, friends, and psychologist, she joined the Young Cancer Survivors Group under the National Cancer Society. “That was where I found other cancer survivors from my age group and it helped because we had relatable experiences.”

Her faith also saw her through some of her darkest moments. “Because of my religion, I understand that challenges in life happen for a reason, it teaches us different things, and God will not test you beyond what you can handle.

“I also find that connecting with my inner child helped,” said the Harry Potter fan, adding that she often used the book’s fictional characters to identify with her experiences.

“For example, I would name my cancer ‘Dementor’, a character in Harry Potter that robs a person of their peace, hope, and happiness,” she explained, adding that being able to name every experience gave her a sense of clarity and security.

“So, when other patients ask me about how I cope, one of the things I would tell them is: tap into your inner child. What did you like playing with when you were younger? Take that experience and use it now.”

‘Have a goal and purpose’

NK Valliammai A Nagappan, 56, one of the book’s editors, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2015. She subsequently had a mastectomy on Valentine’s Day.

For five years, she underwent chemo, radiotherapy, and hormone therapy. However, the journey did not end there for this wealth planner.

In 2019, she was diagnosed with a paralysed left diaphragm and lymphedema, which is swelling due to the build-up of lymph fluid in the body.

She lost a lot of weight, and began suffering from voice changes, droopy eye, and cough. Numerous tests were subsequently conducted.

“The test results, confirming it was a breast cancer recurrence, came out two days before Deepavali 2020.”

So, what kept her going? “The most important thing is yourself – whether you want to go through it. You must keep your mind constantly occupied.”

She said she began to focus on new things and learned about essential oils, and making soaps and scrubs. She also became the main facilitator for Pink Unity Blossom, a cancer support session for women newly diagnosed with cancer.

“Editing the book also gave me a purpose in life – to touch more women and tell them that even with a recurrence, life can still go on. Just because you are a cancer patient, it doesn’t mean that it’s the end of the world.”

Knowledge is important

Chuah Poh Choo, 69, learned she had breast cancer in late 2010 during a routine mammogram screening.

“The news did not hit me that hard. Maybe that’s because after I retired, I did volunteer work where I organised talks about cancer, so I had knowledge about it,” the retired teacher told FMT.

Chuah subsequently had a mastectomy and underwent six cycles of chemotherapy as well as radiotherapy. Eventually, the cancer went into remission.

However, last year she discovered, once again during a routine mammogram, that she had cancer in her other breast.

“The doctor considered the results ‘good news’ because it was not full-blown cancer, and she called it ‘Ductal Carcinoma In Situ’ or DCIS.” DCIS is the presence of abnormal cells inside a milk duct in the breast.

Since it was still in the early stage, she underwent a lumpectomy instead of a mastectomy. No chemotherapy was required.

How did she cope living with cancer?

“I keep telling everybody: have enough knowledge. Because without knowledge, fear comes in because you don’t know what’s happening to you.”

During her first diagnosis, Chuah read everything she could to deepen her knowledge about cancer, especially chemotherapy. Even after her treatment, she participated in conferences, workshops, and talks.

“Cancer is not a life sentence,” she said, advising all women to go for their mammogram screenings.

To purchase a copy of ‘I will not go quietly’ at RM29, contact Lee Chooi Lan of Pink Unity at 016-371 3582.

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