How I fought cancer courageously

Photo:Jenipher Kitoto

The smile on Dorcas Kitoto’s face may not tell the tale of a woman who has had to endure great physical pain. But she has.

The 52-year-old mother of five is a breast cancer survivor who was diagnosed with the disease in 2009.

“I first felt a lump on my right breast in 2005 but I ignored it. It was not painful but there was a bit of discomfort. I was expecting my last born son and after giving birth, it disappeared only to reappear five months later and then disappeared again for a year. I went for a check-up but I was told there was no cause for alarm,” she says.

In 2009, Kitoto says the lump was back and was more visible. When she run more tests, it turned out to be malignant (a cancerous tumor that threatens a health of an individual) and she decided to seek a second opinion before opting to have her right breast removed.

“When two tests showed malignant, surgery was carried out followed by chemotherapy and 25 sessions of radio therapy. I was put on drugs for five years but I took them for four years until 2013,” she says.

Still going on with her cancer treatments, Kitoto developed severe back pains whose cause could not be immediately determine. However, after running several tests it was established that her left breast had also been affected by the cancer. She opted to undergo a second surgery.

“After my second breast was removed, I was discharged but the wound became septic and it got a bad odour. Several visits to the doctor resolved it, but it was a painful experience,” she says.

The pain of chemotherapy was so unbearable that Kitoto had to use crutches. This triggered arthritis and she was again readmitted for some weeks for pain management.

Throughout this painful journey, she admits that her husband was calm and supported her fully towards her recovery. Her children were in boarding school during that time and she did not immediately tell them what was happening.

She, however, had to tell them after they heard about her condition from other people. She also decided to acquire breast prosthesis (artificial breasts) but these were not readily available.

“I had to move from shop to shop in the city looking for the prosthesis and I eventually found them at a shop in Westlands, Nairobi. They are costly and range between Sh5,000 to Sh15,000 each depending on the quality,” she explains.

Being diagnosed with breast cancer, having to go through double mastectomy and the painful post surgery treatment changed her life.

She has since embarked on a mission to visit those who face the same predicament to encourage them while also creating cancer awareness in churches, schools and other forums.

 

Photo: Jenipher Wachie

According to Dr Peter Cherutich, a global health expert, the causes of breast cancer are myriad and the interaction between various risk factors to increase a person’s probability of breast cancer remains unknown.

He, however, notes there is consensus that increasing age, obesity, and alcohol plays a critical role in increasing risk as do genetics.

“Other factors implicated are diets high in sugar and fats as well as lack of exercise. Its important to know that all these factors may not cause cancer on their own but probably through a complex pathway involving some or all of them and also other unknown exposures,” he says.