CANCER WARRIOR: Three-time survivor and still going strong

Sally Kwenda's life has been riddled with a series of misfortunes. The 46-year-old has been living with HIV for 19 years now, and is a survivor of three types of cancer: cervical, colon and rectal. She has gone through depression, a suicide attempt, a toxic marriage and lost her two children, as well as her husband. But Sally is as strong as ever and chooses to share her story with Nation Lifestyle in order to inspire others.

 SLIPPED INTO DEPRESSION

“My husband and I lived in Mombasa. With the first pregnancy, I miscarried at seven months, and lost my second child when he was two months old. I was then diagnosed with HIV in 1999.

My husband refused to get tested for HIV so all he would do was stigmatise me. He had a number of affairs and so we separated for a while, but I took him back after he was diagnosed with the virus. He had agreed to get tested after ailing for a period of time. I took care of him emotionally, physically and financially. He eventually passed on in 2012.

But HIV was not the only disease I had to worry about.

There was a routine check-up at my new place of work in September of 2006. I did a Pap smear test, and the doctors and I set an appointment date for me to get my results later. But I was called sooner than that and told to go as soon as possible. I was informed that I was at stage two of cervical cancer. I was in shock because I had no previous sign or symptom.

The oncologist went ahead and informed me that I needed to make the treatment decisions as soon as possible because the cancer was bound to spread to other parts of my body due to my already suppressed immunity. I sought second and third opinions just as anyone else would want to do, but all the responses were the same: I had to undergo a hysterectomy which meant that my uterus had to be removed.

BIG BLOW

This came as a blow to me because I had already lost my babies at this point and surgery meant that I could not conceive again. I took a long while to think about it, but the surgery was finally scheduled for and done in March 2007. After that, I had check-ups every three months, and my oncologist saw no need for alternative treatments like chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

But exactly three years later, in March of 2010, the doctors found cancer cells in my colon. They said that they would have to remove about 50 centimetres of the intestine where the cancer was, and they did. Tests done after this surgery showed that the cancer was spreading down and was now in my rectum.

I was in tremendous pain at this stage. My oncologist said that he had to perform a colostomy.  I readily obliged. I trusted him since he had been treating me since 2007. I figured it would be a minor surgery and so I did not bother asking for further details. The oncologist also did not take time to explain the procedure to me. I signed the consent forms and was wheeled into theatre, not knowing that my life was about to change.

When I woke up from surgery the following day, I found a nurse attending to me. She asked me to remove the bag on me, and I wondered what she was talking about. She kept pointing to my stomach area so I decided to have a look. I could see the bag that she was talking about, and it covered something that was pink-red in colour. I realised that it was my intestine hanging out from my body. I was traumatised because I had not been prepared for this.

Only days later did I get to know that a large part of my colon was removed, meaning that my bowel motions would now have to be passed through the new opening called the stoma, and into a disposable bag known as a colostomy bag. I would have to live the rest of my life as an ostomate. This refers to a person who undergoes a surgical operation to create an opening in the body for the discharge of body wastes.

I was introduced to a nurse who specialised with ostomates. He informed me everything that I needed to know about, including cleaning and disposing off of the colostomy bags, for the two months that I was admitted at the hospital. He also introduced me to five other ostomates and we formed Stoma World Kenya group the same year, and registered it in 2012. I have been the secretary since then. We are more than 300 members now.

SUPPORT SYSTEM

We provide support to other ostomates; even buying colostomy bags for those who cannot afford them. A colostomy bag costs between Sh600 to Sh1000, depending on the seller, and one may even have to use more than two in a day. We have a donor who sends two shipments of colostomy bags annually.

Stoma World Kenya will this October 6, recognise the World Ostomy Day by spreading more information on the subject to the attendees. The event headlined Did you know that using the toilet is a privilege will be held at the Satya Sai Medical Clinic along Waiyaki Way from 9:30 a.m.

I am lucky enough to have been cancer free ever since the colostomy.

My workmates and friends were always able to raise funds for my hospital bills whenever my medical insurance was exhausted. My family and friends have really supported me emotionally during all these trying times. My faith in God has also never wavered, especially since it was renewed when he saved me from my suicide attempt. Talking to fellow ostomates gave me tremendous hope because it was important to know that I was not alone. I was also lucky enough to get more information on my condition by talking to people who have experienced it before.”

FACT BOX

According to Mayo Clinic, a Pap smear is a procedure to test for cervical cancer in women that involves collecting cells from the cervix, which is the lower, narrow end of the uterus.

According to The Health Line, a colostomy is a surgical procedure that brings one end of the colon through the abdominal wall to create a stoma. A stoma is an opening in the skin where a pouch, or colostomy bag, is attached to collect faeces.

***

To share your cancer story, email [email protected]