Mother’s fight against breast cancer

By Rawlings Otieno

Mercy Wanjiru went about her routine work at her small farm in Thika when she felt a sharp pain in the nipples of her right breast but dismissed it as ordinary pain. This was in June 2010.

Two weeks later, the pain returned, but after scratching her breast, the discomfort subsided. A few days later while scratching the same spot, she felt a growth inside her breast, prompting to seek opinion from her children and relatives.

They agreed that the 53-year-old Wanjiru seeks medical attention. This happened last year at Thika District Hospital, where she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Although she had feared for the worst, it was still a shocker to herself, her children and relatives.

“I was so traumatised when I was diagnosed with breast cancer. In my life I have attended many funerals of people who died from cancer. I didn’t know it would strike any of my family members, leave alone myself,” says Wanjiru, a mother six.

Cancerous tumour

Wanjiru was found to have ‘Ductical Carcinoma Nuclear grade III’ according medical terms. She was given medication but asked to confirm the results through a radiology scan.

A scan at the Aga Khan University Hospital showed a cyst had developed in her breast and she was told that an operation should be done immediately if is she was to get better.

“The cancerous tumour had been spreading at an alarming rate. It was so painful that I was unable sleep at night,” she says. During the day, she braved the pain and went on with her chores. When the pain hit with renewed intensity, she sought medical treatment at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), where she has been told that before any treatment, she had to pay a deposit of Sh20,000, excluding another Sh1,100 for drawing of the blood for analysis.

The only alternative

The Computerised Tomography scan test showed that Wanjiru’s breast had been eaten by cancer and the only remedy was to cut it off to stop its spread.  Wanjiru was devastated, but her heart sank even lower when she was told that this should be done immediately to save her life.

She recalls, “They said that the disease has destroyed the mammary glands and cannot function. As days pass by, chances of it being treated continue to be slim.”

However, according to the KNH radiologist Dr Gladwell Kiarie, Wanjiru must first undergo a blood screen test and a scan to establish the damage of her breast if the disease has spread to her lungs and bones. After the test, she will be put on chemotherapy before analysing the progress, and recommending whether to cut off the entire breast or not.

“We must first establish the extent of the damaged breast before we put her on mastectomy (an operation in which the entire breast, including the nipple and the areola, is removed),” she says.

Predicament

Wanjiru had to quit her farming to avoid injuring herself further. At times she goes without even a meal to save for her treatment. She says she has spent more than Sh500, 000.

“There is no one in the family willing to assist. My children are still in school and most of them have dropped because there is no money,” says Wanjiru.

The doctor’s verdict worries her.

 “I was told that I could still be treated. My breast is to be cut off before am put on chemotherapy to completely heal,” she says .

Wanjiru is also asthmatic and suffers nose-bleeding that started 29 years ago.

According the Dr Gladwell, Wanjiru must undergo six sessions of chemotherapy, a mastectomy and radiotherapy per week for six weeks.

Breast cancer is now the number one killer of women of age 35 to 55 in Kenya, according to the Nairobi Cancer Registry’s most recent statistics.