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beaware

You are Your own strength.

Neysa: I am a resilient person. I did cry at times, but I felt something come

over me and tell me that I was going to be alright. I went to Panama for treat-

ment by myself. I called this a journey, and wanted to do it alone. It was my 

personal strength that kept me going. The f unny thing is when you tell people

 you have cancer, they start crying, and you end up consoling them that it s

going to be okay!

 amaNi H: When I told my daughters about the breast cancer, they were

scared for me, and the eldest was scared for herself. Since I had it, she thoughtshe would get it too. So I took her for an ultra sound and it was ne. My young -

est took it the hardest. But this made me stronger as I felt if I looked scared and

 weak during my treatment, it would affect them more. My children became less

 worried once they saw me full of hope.

Once you start the treatment, things start falling to place and you know what

 you have to do. You feel condent and strong. You need to have a high morale

and a positive attitude to get well soon.

You know Your bodY the best.

Neysa: The moment I rst felt a lump in my breast, I knew 

 what it was. But my mammograms always came ne, and I was

told I was ne. Soon I started feeling worse, I was vomiting

 blood. When I did a re-test in Qatar, I was nally diagnosed

 with breast cancer.If you feel something is wrong, though the tests are negative,

ask for a re-test. You know better how your body feels.

Your familY is Your greatestsupport.

Luiza: When I rst felt a lump in my breast I was contem -

plating going to the doctor. Only when my then 12-year-old son

started insisting, did I have my mammography. When I told

my son that I had breast cancer, he cried the rst day. Every 

day after that he would kiss me, hug me, and try to make me

laugh. I asked him why he did that, and he said because he

 wanted to see me happy.

Noura: My family supported me a lot during my treat-

ment. I can never forget how my mother would sit next to me

everyday and read the Quran with her hand on my chest.

how manY of us sit down to think of the goodthings that life has bestowed upon us? how manY

count our blessings each daY? with a new leaseof life, five breast cancer survivors share withCassey Oliveira the lessons theY have learnt in

their journeY of survival.

Life'smany

Lessons

You don't

be under

tion lifedepends o

Your doctand more

tantlY o

Your btake

breascancer is

like anY odisease. it

treate

exercise doe

deteriorate Ycondition.

makes

You fitter

Trbr

lesson 2

lesson 1

lesson 3

 HOPE, SMILE  AND

 SURVIVE:(l-r) Neysa Hill,  Luiza Pancoti,

 Noura, Amany Eid Garciaand Amani Halawa.

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beaware

Luisa: I never wanted anyone to feel sorry 

for me. I told my husband and children to get back 

to their routine and not worry about me. I also

never let the fear of losing my breast come across

my mind. I think this helped me stay positive.

 

Noura: I always went for my chemotherapy 

alone because I didn t want to see someone upset

 because of my cancer. I am much stronger than

the rest of my family.

breast cancer is not theworst thing to

happen.

 amaNi H: The word cancer itself is very scary.

I always thought cancer is the worst thing that

could happen to anyone, not until I saw people

suffering from nervous system disorders that are

incurable. Their entire body is affected whereas

 just removing a breast doesn t affect your body in

anyway.

appearance doesn t

matter.

Neysa: I decided to excise both my breasts be-cause of the type of cancer I had. It would havespread to the other breast in the future. I just wanted to live.

 amaNi H: Some women live for their appear-

ances and those are the ones who would suffer

during the treatment. They don t do chemother-

apy because they fear losing their hair but they 

don t realise they might lose their life. For an

ordinary, practical woman, appearances don t

matter. They know that the physical changes that

come with breast cancer are temporary. Your hair

 would grow back. You can also opt for a breast re-

construction surgery.

Luiza: After my chemotherapy, I had lost all

my hair. I cried. I came home with a head scarf 

around my head. My son asked me to remove it

 but I refused as I thought I looked ugly. He insist-

ed and told me that I didn t have to cry because

my hair would grow back soon. When I nally re-

lesson 4

al amal hospital

does earlY detection

for breast cancerfor free.

for those whocannot afford the

treatment, all ex-penses are borne bY

the qatar nationalcancer societY.

initiated bY the qatar

national cancer soci-

etY, the haYat cancersupport group com-

prises breast cancersurvivors, families of

survivors and healthcare professionals

who are involved with

spreading awarenessand supporting breast

cancer patients.

haYat cancersupport group

women inqatar are

luckY...

moved the scarf my son kissed my head and told

me that I was always beautiful.

Noura: I had removed both my breasts simul-

taneously because I was told by my doctor that

the cancer would spread to the other breast in the

future, and I didn t want to go through the whole

process again. I didn t want to keep my breasts

to look beautiful to people; living was more

important.

appreciate life.

  amaNy e: Now that I have survived I havegrown stronger, mature and condent.

 amaNi H: As a survivor, you start to see life in

a better way. You don t fuss anymore. You learn

that friends and family are the most important

things in life.

Luiza: When you have breast cancer, ev-

ery morning you wake up and pray to get one

more day to be with your family. You start to

appreciate life.

Noura: I have got a new life and am now start-

ing to see the more beautiful things in life. I had

friends before, but with breast cancer I have

now met so many good friends who have helpedchanged my attitude towards life.

life is a test, face it.

 amaNy e: Religion says that humans will al- ways be tested this was one of my tests. You needto be strong to accept it and nd a way out.

 amaNi H:To have fear is not bad; but let the fear

 be your motive to survive, not the reason why you

die.

Luiza: I once asked my cousin why I got cancer

 when there were people who were unhealthy, who

drank alcohol and smoked cigarettes. My cousin

replied that it was because God loved me, he knew 

that I could handle it much better than such peo-

ple. It s sad that those with good health are wasting

their life with cigarettes and alcohol

lesson 6

lesson 7

lesson 5