Felicity is determined to beat the odds as she battles stage 4 breast cancer

These are the words of Felicity Ramdeyal, who recalled the moment she found out that she had been diagnosed with stage 4 breast cancer last May.

She recalled her sister coming to visit for the weekend, and while she was in the bath, she noticed that her left breast felt harder than the other one.

“I called my sister, and I asked her to come and see if I wasn’t maybe just imagining it. She told me that it was the case and that I should have it checked out,” she said.

She decided to phone her friend, who is also a nurse, and ask her if she would have a look, and she agreed.

“I went and saw her the next day, and she was shocked with what she saw and could not believe that I wasn’t in severe pain! It had become so badly inflamed overnight, and I remember feeling absolutely no pain. She told me to go see a doctor immediately, which I did.”

The doctor assured her that it could be nothing but that he wanted her to get a biopsy done just to be safe.

“I had a mammogram and biopsy done at once, and that is when I was diagnosed with cancer. We then did the staging scan to determine how far along the cancer was, and that is when I found out it was stage 4.” The cancer had already spread to her chest and to her neck, where they found active lymph nodes.

“We did a biopsy on my neck, and the lymph node they removed from the left side of my neck also tested positive for cancer.”

She continued, “My oncologist said that I would have to undergo chemo treatment, but because it had spread to my neck, he said surgery was not an option. But the power of prayer is an amazing thing, and through the chemo, I started seeing results.”

By December, she had done a PET scan, and he was amazed by the results. Her neck and chest had cleared, and the cancer was only in her breast, and it had reduced in size rather dramatically.

In February of this year, Felicity was finally able to undergo surgery and had a bilateral mastectomy.

“After the surgery, we believed I would be going into remission, but during the surgery, they removed lymph nodes under my left arm, which then also tested positive for cancer.”

Felicity once again had to have another CT scan done, which showed that there were still active lymph nodes under her arm, which meant she had to go back on chemo.

“This time I was given the option of taking the chemo tablets instead of the drip because I did not see the chance of going through the drip treatment again; it’s called the ‘red devil’ for a reason.”

Fortunately, it has not spread anywhere else.

The Journey, Faith, and Family:

According to Felicity, the worst part about being diagnosed with cancer was that it did not just affect her health; it also affected everything and everyone around her.

“It affected my family; my kids went into depression. It affected their schoolwork and caused them to develop anxiety. My daughter became so responsible and took on a lot of the household chores; my son shared a lot of the responsibilities as well but, out of fear, withdrew himself from me. My brothers and sisters put their lives on hold to come and help me every time I went for chemo. They would come and help take care of me and my kids. My in-laws were providing us with meals and helping to get tasks done. It also put extra strain on my husband, Mark, who wanted to be with me constantly but knew he had to work to continue to provide for us,” she explained.

According to her, the fact that she was diagnosed with stage 4 just scared everyone even more, as she believed they always worried about her.

After she started losing her hair, she said she realized that cancer put a stigma on her, and people became afraid to approach her or even talk to her.

“Before the cancer, I would stand and talk to other parents while waiting for my children to come out of school, but once I started losing my hair and wasn’t looking well anymore, people steered away from me.”

Spiritually, she said it attacks one, as she believed once your body is attacked, so is your mind. Thousands of thoughts run through their heads, especially when they question their faith.

“A lot of people lose their faith, but I personally became closer to God through this experience.”

According to her, it also puts a strain on a family’s finances as all of a sudden they have to travel more frequently to Pietermaritzburg, she has to change her lifestyle and eating habits, and she has to spend a lot of money on medication.

“The emotional toll it takes is the hardest of all. Even though you have people constantly around you, helping you and taking care of you, you still feel so alone because, as much as they try to sympathize and understand what you’re going through, they can’t because you yourself cannot explain it because most times you yourself don’t understand what’s going on inside of you,” she said.

She also believed the journey had brought her family closer together in more ways than one.

“We always spoke openly and honestly about what was going on and never hid things from the children, even before going for surgery, which my son wasn’t happy about because he was so scared,” she said.

Staying positive:

“I have a close walk with God now that I have taken myself out of the comfort zone of my spiritual life. The grace of God has carried me through this journey, and I don’t believe I would have been here if not for God’s hand upon my life.”

She also said that her family and friends had been an amazing support system and had gone beyond measures to help make this battle easier, even if it was a simple motivational message helping her to remain positive.

“I am positive going forward. I have been positive from the beginning, and the results have shown. I have defied the odds so far, and I am not going to allow this to get me down. I believe I have already won this battle; I just need to complete the process!”

Advice to fellow cancer warriors:

“Never give up! No matter how hard it gets, do not allow the sickness to take control of your mind! If you have a positive mindset, then half your battle is already won. Take it one day at a time, and don’t let anything break your stride. Above all, never lose your faith in God.”

The news provided to you in this link has been investigated and compiled by the editorial staff of the Newcastle Advertiser, a sold newspaper distributed in the Newcastle area. Please follow us on Youtube and feel free to like, comment, and subscribe. For more local news, visit our webpage, follow us on Facebook and Twitter, and request an add on our WhatsApp (082 874 5550).