The day was February 12, 2005. Dr. Margaret Okello Nyeko, a senior consultant anesthesiologist at Mulago hospital, had just finished her jogging routine when she suddenly felt something itching on her right breast. When she scratched it, she felt something small and hard. Upon doing a further self-examination, she felt a lump “I got very scared. Suddenly, my heart started racing,” she says. She immediately called a female breast cancer specialist. “She proposed that I see her on Monday since she was unavailable during the weekend” she says. That weekend was one of the longest in her life. “I was restless the entire time. I kept looking at my breast, hoping it was not what I imagined it to be,” she says, adding “But deep down, I suspected breast cancer.”
Her worst Fears confirmed
Finally, when the appointment day came, Dr..Nyeko went to see the doctor, who advised her to do a scan and mammogram at Mulago hospital. The results confirmed her worst fears “It was indeed a lump and some fluid had been found in it. Further examination of the fluid depicted that there were a lot of cancerous cells in it. These cells were tested and proved to be breast cancer,” she says. Her heart shrunk upon hearing the news. Her mind, on the other hand lingered with s many questions “I asked myself, why me? Why me? I could not understand how the disease came about. I had always been mindful of my health,” She says, Margaret posed some of the questions to the doctors, who explained that the exact cause of the disease was not known, although it is normally caused by several factors, including having an early menstruation period, late menopause and if the cancer runs in one’s family. She then met three oncologists who gave her various options of what to do next, including having an operation done to remove the whole breast or only the lump .It was a difficult time for my family.
The Operation
The surgery was performed at the end of that same month she was diagnosed. Part of it also included removing the lymph nodes attached to the same breast where the cancer had spread. At the time she was diagnosed, she was told that the cancer was at stage 2. But during the operation when the doctors found that it had spread to the lymph nodes, she was told that it had progressed to stage 4. Usually, the higher the stage, the more advanced the cancer is. The operation was a success. The only challenge was that she had failed to come to terms with the fact that she had one breast. “From time to time, I broke down. Adjusting was really difficult for me,” she says. But her support system, including her family and colleagues at work, were always by her side, encouraging her to be strong and not to let the disease take a toll on her. It was this care and prayers that she says made her fight on.
Treatment
As time passed, she was put on chemotherapy, which involves use of drugs to kill any cancerous cells that could still be present in her blood. The chemotherapy took about six months and the mother of five says she was lucky to have gone through all the sessions as she once heard that not all patients can bear the advance effects of the treatment. What followed then was radiotherapy, which was about 25 sessions In 2010, Dr Nyeko was declared breast cancer-free. This was again confirmed in 2012. However, she still does routine check-ups at Mulago hospital, including ultra sounds and mammograms of her healthy breast
in order to be certain that she is not at risk again.
Advice to other women:
Hang in there. Constantly follow the doctor’s advice, take the treatment and also remain hopeful. You will be fine. You can also join Uganda Women’s Cancer Support Organization (UWOCASO), a group made up of women battling cancer, as well as survivors .And to those who have not been diagnosed yet,make sure that you do regular self-examinations and if you suspect anything unusual, especially any lump, seek medical attention ,
(Dr, Margaret is a Rotarian Past Assistant Governor and Past World Class President of Rotary Club of Naguru .She shared her story with Esther Oluka-Daily Monitor)
