Woman endures painful cancerous life

By RAWLINGS OTIENO and JECKONIA OTIENO

Two years ago, Mercy Wanjiru felt pain in her right breast but never took it seriously, since she had always been on medication.

Last year, Wanjiru was diagnosed with breast cancer, which came as a shocker to both her, her children and relatives.

 "I was so traumatised when I was diagnosed with breast cancer but I have been unable to conquer this disease," says a tearful Wanjiru.

Wanjiru 53, felt a growth in her breast and decided to seek medical attention in June 2010 at Thika District Hospital. Her predicament further raises the profile of cancer in Kenya, which also caused the death of the late Nobel Laureate Prof Wangari Maathai among other prominent people.

“This tumour has been spreading at an alarming rate, it is so painful that even sleeping has become a problem,” says Wanjiru.

She has led a painful life for the past two years. In June 2010, Wanjiru was doing her routine work at a small farm in Thika. While weeding maize and beans, the woman who is divorced recalls feeling a sharp pain in the nipples of her right breast but she dismissed it as ordinary pain.

Says she: "The pain was not severe and after I scratched the breast, the pain subsided." The pain recurred at an alarming frequency. She pressed her breast and felt a small growth which prompted her to seek medical clarification. So she was diagnosed and found to have Ductical Carcinoma Nuclear grade III in medical terms.

She was given medication but was directed to confirm the results through radiology scan again at an established hospital. After a while, the tumour burst and bled for hours; a CT scan at the Aga Khan University Hospital showed a cyst had developed in her breast but told that operation should be done immediately if is she was to get better.She was given pain killers and other tablets to stop the spread of the cancer.

This did not last long because two weeks later, as she performed her normal chores, the pain hit with renewed intensity. She then sought medical treatment at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH) where she was told that before she could start undergoing any treatment, she had to pay a deposit of Sh20, 000 apart from Sh1, 100 for drawing of the blood for analysis.

The CT scan test showed that the deadly cancer had eaten into Wanjiru’s breast that the only remaining solution was to amputate it to prevent the tumour spreading. She was devastated, but her heart sank even lower when she was told that her situation could be but it had to be done really fast. She recalls,

"They told me that the disease had destroyed the mammary glands and they could not function anymore. As days painfully crawl by, chances of it being treated continue to be slim."

However, according to Radiologist Dr. Gladwell Kiarie at Kenyatta National Hospital (KNH), Wanjiru must first undergo a blood screen test and a scan to establish the damage of her breast to see if the disease has spread to her lungs and bones. After the test, she will then be first put on chemotherapy before analyzing the progress then there can be a recommendation on whether to amputate the entire breast or not.

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

Wanjiru, a small scale farmer had to quit farming to nurse her ailment which she says has overstretched her strength and resources beyond comprehension. This has had a serious impact on her ability to work extraneously, and at times she goes without even a meal to save for her treatment. She says has spent more than Sh500, 000.

"There is no one in the family willing to assist. If I call their numbers, no one picks because to them I have become a burden. My children should be in school and now most of them have dropped because there is no money" laments Wanjiru.

She is worried by the doctor’s verdict that for her to survive, then an operation on the breast must be performed before the end of next month.

 “I was told that I can still be treated. My breast is to be cut off before am put on Chemotherapy of six sessions every week to completely heal,” she notes sadly.

The mother six is not only suffering from breast cancer but also asthma and nose bleeding which she says has had a toll on her health for the last 29 years.

According the Dr. Gladwell, Wanjiru must undergo six sessions of chemotherapy at the cost of Sh 6000, a mastectomy (breast operation) between Sh10, 000 and 20, 000 and Radiotherapy Sh1,500 per week for six weeks.