Cancer patient relives traumatic experience Esther Mhuri is preparing to have her second breast removed so that cancer can stop spreading to other parts of her body
Esther Mhuri is preparing to have her second breast removed so that cancer can stop spreading to other parts of her body

Esther Mhuri is preparing to have her second breast removed so that cancer can stop spreading to other parts of her body

Ruth Butaumocho Gender Editor—

At 37 and at the prime of her life, a Gweru woman, Esther Mhuri is on the verge of losing her second breast to cancer. In the last three years she has undergone countless operations that have taken a toll on her health, traumatising her to the core.=She already has a medical bill running into thousands of dollars and had to sell her house and all her assets, throwing her into destitution. But Esther is not about to give up, not yet.

She is preparing to have her second breast removed so that cancer can stop spreading to other parts of her body.

“I have lost all that I worked for in my entire life and even relatives now shun me. But I can’t give up on life, because my children will suffer once I die,” revealed an emotionally drained Esther in an interview in Gweru over the weekend.

Esther was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2013, a development that was to change her life after the doctor broke the news to her on a fateful Thursday morning. She is among thousands of women who are battling with breast cancer as the Zimbabwe tries to contain ravages of cancer.

Breast cancer is the second most common cancer affecting women in Zimbabwe, after cervical cancer. According to the National Cancer Registry, 7 000 women in the Zimbabwe are diagnosed with the disease annually. In 2008, breast cancer caused 458 503 deaths worldwide, and the figures continue to rise as Zimbabwe battles with all forms of cancer.

Currently, over 5 000 new cancer cases are diagnosed (all types) in Zimbabwe annually.

This is just the tip of the iceberg as many cancers are not captured by the routine National Health Information System because the patients do not present themselves for treatment, or some deaths are not registered.

Of those who do report, the majority are already at an advanced stage of the disease due to limited access to screening services.

And when the cancers are at an advanced stage, the costs become unbearable for the ordinary person.

Esther has to date spent up to $150 000 but her problems are far from over.

Narrating her ordeal, Esther says her life was completely shattered in March 2013 when doctors diagnosed that she had breast cancer and an emergency operation was needed to stop the cancer from spreading to all parts of the body.

With no other prospects of getting money to undergo the operation, Esther immediately sold her house in Senga suburb for $10 000, while silently praying that the proceeds from the house would be able to cover most of her bills.

“That’s the most difficult decision I have ever made in my life but I had no option but to dispose of the house so that I could pay for my treatment,” she said.

Little did she know that she would have to make similar tough decisions in order to sustain her treatment programme.

Esther’s first operation was a success, and had one of her breasts removed.

Unknown to her, that was the beginning of similar operations as doctors fought hard to contain the disease.

It was while she was going through the healing process that her doctor discovered that her liver was no longer functioning properly, and she had to urgently have a liver transplant.

Currently, over 5 000 new cancer cases are diagnosed (all types) in Zimbabwe annually.

Currently, over 5 000 new cancer cases are diagnosed (all types) in Zimbabwe annually.

I was numb with shock. I could not believe that there was going to be another operation,” she recalled.

By then Esther, who was now bedridden, had to close her thriving salon so that she could concentrate on her health. Her social life took a downward turn, as the effects of her medical condition began to spill over the welfare of her family.

“My kids were no longer going to school. I was facing serious financial problems. I had no one or other means of income that I could use to pay my fees.”

Determined to seek treatment, but without adequate resources, Esther resolved to dispose of her two vehicles, a Chevrolet Cruz, a BMW and household furniture so that she could offset some of her medical bills, which were ballooning with each day. By then, her health had deteriorated and she had to be hospitalised for three months.

Although she was undergoing chemotherapy, the cancer had spread to her right arm.

“I had exhausted money from the sale proceeds of the house, cars and household property and I had nothing,” she recalled.

Realising that her medical bills had wiped out all her savings, Esther resolved to take a begging bowl to well-wishers.

“I approached several businesspeople, individuals, organisations and the business community, but it was a futile exercise,” she said.

She then took her case to the late Cephas Msipa who referred her to Gweru businesswoman and philanthropist, Mrs Smelly Dube, the director of Riverside Properties, who was willing to help.

“I had no one to turn to. But I realised that I needed to survive so that I would take care of my children,” she boldly declared.

Despite the challenges she has been going through from the time she was diagnosed with cancer, Esther is willing to take another leap of faith by undergoing yet another operation that will result in her losing another breast.

And should that operation become a success, Esther would now be able to lead a normal life together with her four children, thanks Mrs Dube for coming to her rescue when she had lost all hope of getting adequate treatment.

“If it was not for Mai Dube, I could be dead. From the time I walked into her office some months ago, she has taken over my medical bills, sending my children to school and buying us food, something that my friends and close relatives were unable to do,” said Esther.

Mrs Dube has since put Esther on medical aid to ensure there is minimum interruption to her treatment.

Mrs Dube, who has been footing Esther’s bill for close to three months, said she felt compelled to assist her when she realised the trauma she was going through after undergoing several operations.

“I was touched by her determination to overcome her condition because of her social and financial situation.

“As a company (Riverside Properties) we are doing all we can to assist her in getting treatment, while caring for her children. Her children were equally traumatised seeing their mother lying hopeless, plagued by ill-health,” said Mrs Dube.

While Esther can sleep peacefully waiting for her next operation, many women will not be that lucky.

There are thousands of women in Zimbabwe who will die before they can access or finish treatment because of its prohibitive costs. Breast and cervical cancers, among other cancers, are a major public health concern not only in Zimbabwe but across sub-Saharan Africa with reports saying it is expected to double in the next 20 years.

In Zimbabwe cancer is the major cause of morbidity and mortality with over 5 000 new diagnoses and over 1 500 deaths each year. Deaths from cancer worldwide are projected to continue to rise to over 13,1 million by 2030.

In Zimbabwe, cancer cases have escalated by 6 percent in the last five years.

Latest figures released by the Zimbabwe Cancer Registry show that there has been a steady increase in reported cases.

Without trivialising any of the pandemics that are commemorated throughout the year, breast cancer has suddenly become cause for concern after it emerged that the disease is now killing over half a million women across the globe every year.

According to research, one in eight women is likely to develop breast cancer, while one in 1 000 is likely to suffer a similar fate, clearly indicating that breast cancer has got the face of a woman.

Research also shows that breast cancer is the most common cancer in women both in the developed and less developed world.

According to WHO, Global Health Estimates (2013), worldwide over 508 000 women died in 2011 due to breast cancer.

Although breast cancer is thought to be a disease of the developed world, almost 50 percent of cases and 58 percent of deaths occur in less developed countries due to various reasons such as diet, and the effects of the climate.

The shocking facts of breast cancer and how it is decimating the female population across the globe have in the last 10 years created a hype around the disease, something that was not possible in the early 1990s when the condition grew to unimaginable levels.

Many expect to recover rapidly after the diagnosis, but that does not always happen because they feel unwell and exhausted for a long time.

To worsen the situation, the costs of cancer treatment and palliative care are prohibitive for the ordinary person.

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