Cheryl's Fight to Beat her Cancer
Donation protected
As a number of my family and friends already know, and for those who don’t, in October last year I was diagnosed with Grade 3 invasive breast cancer.
Understandably this came as an acute shock. A bit like being smacked over the back of the head in the dark with a very heavy mallet! I was already in a particularly fragile state of mind, reeling over a betrayal of the worst kind by a trusted friend and business associate a short week prior, with whom I had been working with for the bulk of the year on a massive project. I remember being in a bit of a blue funk coming out of the doctor’s rooms after getting the results of the biopsy. The big C!! WHAT? I had led a pretty healthy existence, well certainly more so in recent years. How did this happen? OK, so I've been pretty stressed for the past 30 odd years and I’m no exercise queen (gyms have never held much appeal), but the Fitbit that my son Michael gave me does encourage me to try and walk most days, so how, why, when did this happen? All these questions were flooding my brain. This couldn't possibly be happening to me. The fear and confusion is hard to explain. But, being a mostly positive person, I soon realized that I had to take positive action. Feeling sorry for myself wasn’t going to get me anywhere.
Telling my kids was the hardest part. They were understandably devastated. It wasn't easy convincing them that this wasn't the worst news one could receive. People can and do survive breast cancer. Some even survive under impossible circumstances. Miracles do and have happened. I have friends, and friends of friends, and newly made friends who are living testament to this.
The upshot of the situation was that I immediately realized the stark reality that I could not continue running my new business. While I was passionate about the projects that we were working on and had high hopes for them becoming really successful both here in Australia and across Asia, I simply didn’t have the funds to continue. I had worked for 8 months with no income. The loss of the potential income from the profit of these projects was huge. The impact of the betrayal even more so. This realisation had a familiar ring to the feeling of being hit over the head in the dark with a heavy mallet! So now I had cancer. Very quickly things were put into perspective. It wasn’t hard to know what I had to focus on. If I wanted to heal myself I needed to put some things into action and I needed to do so quickly. As proud as I have always been I had no option but to register for government benefits again and forge ahead with focusing on my health and wellbeing. The impact of the betrayal had to be locked away for good. I had to work hard to find a way to forgive her the stress her actions caused and put this behind me. I had far more important things to put my energy into, but before I did so, I had to eradicate the anger inside of me.
I joined an amazing organisation called Cancer Support WA here in Cottesloe, Perth and soon realised that the one thing I wasn't going to do was take things at face value. In my quest to truly understand this disease and have the best chance of healing myself I needed to research all there is to know about breast cancer. I needed to take a good look at, and understand, all the various treatment protocols out there and the impact these have on the body and one’s long-term longevity prospects. I needed to take action. The wonderful Carol at Cancer Support WA gave me a book to read called Radical Remission by Dr. Kelly Turner. The library at Cancer Support WA has heaps and heaps of books, CD's and DVD's, all of which have to be evidence based in terms of their message, and all freely available on loan to members.
Some of the other amazing services offered by Cancer Support WA are free talks by various inspiring and exceptional experts in their specific fields of wellbeing, health and mindfulness etc; classes on Meditation, Thai Chi, Yoga, Nutrition, etc; free counseling by two highly qualified psychologists for members and their immediate family members; 24/7 telephone support by the same wonderful psychologists; and many other wonderful support services and events. Some inspiring people who I consider friends have shared their wisdom at Cancer Support WA - Rabia Siddique and David Michie being amongst them. My friend Suzanne Waldron is due to speak in June on Flourishing. Something Suzanne does on a daily basis.
Reading Dr. Kelly Turner's incredible book cemented some of what I already had a deep sense of but also made me realise some very important stuff that I hadn't even considered! I needed to:
TAKE CONTROL OF MY HEALTH:
I was going to fall into the bracket of "annoying patient." I was going to ask my doctors questions, at times, infuriating questions. While I am acutely aware of how lucky I am to be living in Australia with it’s national health system and government benefits for people in my position (if I was back in South Africa I would be “up shit stream without a paddle” ….. as the saying goes!) I have discovered to my horror that the western medical system leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to the standard treatment of cancer. This is a universal thing, not just an Australian thing. Nutrition doesn't form part of a doctor's studies (surprising but true!) and Big Pharma is dead set on squashing any holistic approach to healing cancer. An interesting read for those who may be interested to know a little more.
RADICALLY CHANGE MY DIET:
I switched to a 95% raw, organic vegan, regular juicing diet, which has resulted in me dropping 20kgs (they needed to go) and to be honest, I have never felt better! On the advice of one of the many experts I have been speaking to, I have recently introduced grass fed beef and/or organic, free range chicken once or twice a week. I drink only filtered water which I get for free from the wonderful John at Power Labs in Fremantle. I also gave up alcohol. As most of my family and friends know, I do enjoy a good wine, but with cancer, this is a total no-no. Cancer thrives on sugar, so all refined sugar has been eliminated. Was it difficult? For sure. But with finances being what they were, any money I was getting from CentreLink was only going to be spent on getting my body into prime condition by good, wholesome nutrition and healing supplements etc. And while wine would have certainly come in handy at those times when I have just wanted to drown my sorrows, it sadly had to go. I have also got rid of all toxic substances in my laundry, kitchen and bathroom cupboards and now only use all natural products. There are some incredible all natural cosmetics and skincare products made here in Australia. My sister Gill introduced me to a wonderful brand called Modere that I hope to start promoting in due course. Its also pretty amazing what one can make from normal household products to clean grout!! Its not only about what one puts into one’s body, but also what one puts onto ones body that needs to be considered. After all our skin is the largest organ in our body and toxic substances are quickly absorbed into our blood stream. Amazing – at the tender age of 63, almost 64, I am learning things that are should be so glaringly obvious. Duh!!! Did I say almost 64? Yikes, how did that happen? Last time I looked I was about the same age as my eldest son. Whew life sure flies by in a flash! I'm determined to make the next 20 years sooooo much better than the last 20! The raw, organic food is going to contribute in a massive way to making this a reality.
INCLUDE HEALING HERBS AND SUPPLEMENTS INTO MY DIET:
There have been many serendipitous moments that have led me to meeting some amazing people with heaps of experience in dealing with cancer and the mound of tried and tested, alternative treatments available. Their willingness to freely give me their time and to sharing their knowledge and expertise with me has been overwhelming.
FOLLOW MY INTUITION:
I have held onto this in moments of fear and confusion, and there have been many! It is also vital to go with one's gut feelings when challenged by people with the best of intentions, but perhaps without a smidegoen of research. The key here is to to be grateful for the care and advice, but to stand firm. Not always easy to do but essential to one's feeling of wellbeing.
EMBRACE & ENHANCE MY SPIRITUALITY:
Having lost my faith in traditional religion a long time ago, I have spent the past 4 months working hard on getting back in touch with nature, meditation, prayer etc. I have by no means mastered this. I still have a long way to go, but its been an enriching experience and I am utterly convinced that this forms a key element of healing.
RELEASE SUPPRESSED EMOTIONS:
Once and for all I had to make sure that any grudges that I may still be holding onto needed to go. I needed to focus on love and forgiveness …… love and forgiveness of anyone who has done me harm, hurt me and/or caused me pain. There have been many. And also to love and forgive myself for any bad choices I have made in my life, and again, there have been many! This realisation has been truly empowering. Again, it takes effort but is well worth doing. Amazing how wonderful it feels to rid oneself of all those useless emotions. Only way is forward - no need to carry any baggage from the past on my back.
LEAD A LESS STRESSFUL LIFE:
While this is often easier said than done, I’ve been working hard at not sweating the small stuff and flicking those moments where perhaps I feel just a wee bit sorry for myself. Not being judgemental, eliminating any guilt one may carry around (often for all the wrong reasons) and living a life with no expectations truly helps!
FOCUS ON ALL THE WONDERFUL REASONS I HAVE TO LIVE A LONG, HEALTHY LIFE:
This is not about not fearing death, but rather having truly good reasons for wanting to live. And I have many, many reasons for wanting to live for at least another 20 years! I have dreams to fulfil, goals to reach and important things to do. Yes kids, your mother is going to be around for a long time still. No need to start planning my funeral any time soon.
EMBRACE SOCIAL SUPPORT:
I am blessed with a wonderful, wonderful family and incredible friends who have all been amazingly supportive and encouraging. I thank God every day for each and every one of you. You are my richest blessings. Even those of you who are separated from my life purely by distance are precious to me and thought of regularly . Not much can replace lifelong friendships that span decades even if we're not in regular contact.
This truly has been the most incredible journey. Daunting but incredibly enriching and dare I say it, pretty shocking. While I have only touched the tip of the iceberg, the past 4 months research has opened my eyes wide. I have listened to hundreds of podcasts, read dozens of articles and books, and watched a huge number of videos, films and DVD's - all by various experts in the field of health, wellbeing and more specifically cancer. What I have learned has been gob-smacking.
I have recently had a further ultrasound which has shown that the tumour is contained, and that the size is exactly the same as when it was first discovered. I am told that this indicates that what I have been doing has stopped the cancer growth. This is good news! Knowing that tumours can almost double in size in a few months, I feel that what I am doing is working well. But the tumour now needs to be removed before I can embark on the next stage of my treatment.
While I really have only opened up the tip of the iceberg, what it has also made me to realise is that this cancer thing may truly be a gift. I have often heard cancer survivors say this and honestly never quite understood where they were coming from. I get it now. My dream, once I have healed myself, is to help other cancer sufferers realise that they have choices; not to tell them what to do, but to point them in the direction of some amazing people (a whole lot more informed than I am) and information that they can read, listen to and/or watch to help them reach a decision that sits well with them. I would never ever dare tell anyone that there is only one way. There isn't. Decisions have to be made by what resonates, not by what anyone tells you to do.
It also made me realize that my initial fear of, and reluctance to, undergo chemotherapy and/or radiation has very real substance - for me. I totally respect and admire anyone who chooses this route, and I also know that many have survived cancer choosing this option. For me, however, I am simply not prepared to opt for this as my treatment protocol. While the immediate side effects are absolutely awful, and I salute all who have bravely gone through this, for me it’s the long-term impact to my immune system and other deeply concerning ramifications of putting such toxic chemicals into my body that has me reeling away from this option.
So, next Thursday (25th February) I have a follow up appointment with one of Perth’s top breast surgeons to discuss what surgery I need to undergo. The two options are lumpectomy or mastectomy. I will discuss the pros and cons of both and make a decision as to which way I want to go. There were two opposing opinions by two previous surgeons I saw before Christmas, which led me to seeking a further opinion from this highly regarded surgeon. Over and above having her own private practice, she operates at Royal Perth (a public hospital for those of my friends who don’t live in Perth), which is a huge win for me. Yes she would prefer me to agree to chemotherapy. This is what all doctors recommend. It is the only treatment they know. But this is my body and my life we're talking about and I have come across too many horror stories about the effects of chemotherapy. So one of the really important things I have realized is that I do have a choice. My decision may not resonate with, or be understood by everyone but, after all my research, I firmly believe that it’s the right one for me. I pray that you can all respect this decision of mine.
Whereto from here and why this crowd funding campaign?
My surgery is likely to take place within the next three weeks or so.
There are some incredible cancer hospitals and clinics throughout the world, all doing some wonderful work with more holistic approaches to treating cancer. Obviously these are all very, very expensive and mostly far away somewhere in Europe or China.
I have looked at a lot of these clinics as well as the treatments they offer and the related costs. One which stands out is a lot closer to Australia and fits well with me, both from the treatment protocols they offer, cost and flexibility in terms of being able to continue some of the treatments at home. It is Immuno Biotech in Auckland, New Zealand. The treatment includes following the Ketogenic diet.
My friends and family in South Africa have also offered for me to spend some time with them for a few months to focus fully on my healing after I finish my treatment in Auckland. This is particularly appealing to me as it releases any pressure from my three children who all have very demanding careers and as much as they are willing and keen, caring for me while I heal would be extremely difficult for them. It is also the far cheaper option - the favourable exchange rate has the Aussie dollar going a lot further when it comes to food and supplements in South Africa.
The big issue I have is that I simply don’t have the funds to do any of this. Hence this Go Fund Me crowd funding campaign that many of my friends have urged me to initiate.
The $25,000 that I need to raise will cover my treatment for two weeks at the clinic in New Zealand, my ongoing treatment for the next couple of months at home after leaving the clinic, return flights to Auckland, and accommodation as this is not a live-in clinic (I have sourced a reasonable AirBnB room close to the clinic), return flights to South Africa, my continued organic food and supplement costs for the next 6 months. Unfortunately CentreLink stop all payments for the duration that one is out of Australia.
I have always found asking anyone for help extremely difficult. Perhaps it is because I am an intensely proud person. However, this is my life I'm talking about and this surely is no time to be proud. So while I am super embarrassed to have to ask for help, I truly have no option.
My plan is to hopefully be in a position to stick to the plan! So if you could spare any amount to help me reach my goal, I would be ever so grateful.
As already mentioned my bigger plan is to come back to Perth in the second half of this year and to offer my services to anyone on a similar journey who may be confused by all the information that is out there with regard to cancer. This fills me with excitement, and while there is still a long, tough road to travel, and no guarantees, I am determined that as soon as I am healed, I want to give back in a way that has meaning and which hopefully can help people find their way to making the right decisions about their cancer and journey back to full health. There is no right or wrong way, but it sure helps when someone is there to shine a light on some helpful info, to encourage when decisions need to be made, to lend an ear when they need someone to listen, to provide a shoulder when they need to cry and to hold their hand whenever they need holding.
My beautiful daughter Jessica gets married in December and while I am gutted that I am not in a position to contribute financially to her special day, my gift to her will be to be at her wedding in full health and with the promise to be around for a long time as a lively and healthy grandmother to her hopefully many children. She has been at every doctor's appointment with me, and while initially was more than a little confused and very concerned about my choices, she has taken the time to read some of the articles and watch some of the videos and seems to be a lot more respectful and supportive of my choices.
My two gorgeous sons are clearly going to be taking a little longer to make this dream of mine of becoming a grandmother come true, but I am equally determined to be around for when they eventually decide to settle down and reproduce their own little ankle-biters. I cannot wait! I want to be surrounded by dozens of grandchildren. I would love them all to call me Goggo (that's Zulu for Granny and is pronounced GawGaw for all my non-South African friends.)
Back to the money I am trying to raise.
A big chunk of the funds I am hoping to raise is required within the next month to secure my place at the clinic. As we all know its little steps that lead to the end goal. So any amount that you can spare will help and, believe me, will be very, very much appreciated. More so than any of you can begin to imagine. I will have you to thank for giving me the chance to hopefully live for another 20 years and to do everything I can to help others facing this frightening journey. That's the serious part of my plan!
Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you can donate to my campaign I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Cheryl
PS: If anyone would like more info on some of the research, books, videos, podcasts that have formed the basis of my research, please let me know. I would be more than happy to share.
Understandably this came as an acute shock. A bit like being smacked over the back of the head in the dark with a very heavy mallet! I was already in a particularly fragile state of mind, reeling over a betrayal of the worst kind by a trusted friend and business associate a short week prior, with whom I had been working with for the bulk of the year on a massive project. I remember being in a bit of a blue funk coming out of the doctor’s rooms after getting the results of the biopsy. The big C!! WHAT? I had led a pretty healthy existence, well certainly more so in recent years. How did this happen? OK, so I've been pretty stressed for the past 30 odd years and I’m no exercise queen (gyms have never held much appeal), but the Fitbit that my son Michael gave me does encourage me to try and walk most days, so how, why, when did this happen? All these questions were flooding my brain. This couldn't possibly be happening to me. The fear and confusion is hard to explain. But, being a mostly positive person, I soon realized that I had to take positive action. Feeling sorry for myself wasn’t going to get me anywhere.
Telling my kids was the hardest part. They were understandably devastated. It wasn't easy convincing them that this wasn't the worst news one could receive. People can and do survive breast cancer. Some even survive under impossible circumstances. Miracles do and have happened. I have friends, and friends of friends, and newly made friends who are living testament to this.
The upshot of the situation was that I immediately realized the stark reality that I could not continue running my new business. While I was passionate about the projects that we were working on and had high hopes for them becoming really successful both here in Australia and across Asia, I simply didn’t have the funds to continue. I had worked for 8 months with no income. The loss of the potential income from the profit of these projects was huge. The impact of the betrayal even more so. This realisation had a familiar ring to the feeling of being hit over the head in the dark with a heavy mallet! So now I had cancer. Very quickly things were put into perspective. It wasn’t hard to know what I had to focus on. If I wanted to heal myself I needed to put some things into action and I needed to do so quickly. As proud as I have always been I had no option but to register for government benefits again and forge ahead with focusing on my health and wellbeing. The impact of the betrayal had to be locked away for good. I had to work hard to find a way to forgive her the stress her actions caused and put this behind me. I had far more important things to put my energy into, but before I did so, I had to eradicate the anger inside of me.
I joined an amazing organisation called Cancer Support WA here in Cottesloe, Perth and soon realised that the one thing I wasn't going to do was take things at face value. In my quest to truly understand this disease and have the best chance of healing myself I needed to research all there is to know about breast cancer. I needed to take a good look at, and understand, all the various treatment protocols out there and the impact these have on the body and one’s long-term longevity prospects. I needed to take action. The wonderful Carol at Cancer Support WA gave me a book to read called Radical Remission by Dr. Kelly Turner. The library at Cancer Support WA has heaps and heaps of books, CD's and DVD's, all of which have to be evidence based in terms of their message, and all freely available on loan to members.
Some of the other amazing services offered by Cancer Support WA are free talks by various inspiring and exceptional experts in their specific fields of wellbeing, health and mindfulness etc; classes on Meditation, Thai Chi, Yoga, Nutrition, etc; free counseling by two highly qualified psychologists for members and their immediate family members; 24/7 telephone support by the same wonderful psychologists; and many other wonderful support services and events. Some inspiring people who I consider friends have shared their wisdom at Cancer Support WA - Rabia Siddique and David Michie being amongst them. My friend Suzanne Waldron is due to speak in June on Flourishing. Something Suzanne does on a daily basis.
Reading Dr. Kelly Turner's incredible book cemented some of what I already had a deep sense of but also made me realise some very important stuff that I hadn't even considered! I needed to:
TAKE CONTROL OF MY HEALTH:
I was going to fall into the bracket of "annoying patient." I was going to ask my doctors questions, at times, infuriating questions. While I am acutely aware of how lucky I am to be living in Australia with it’s national health system and government benefits for people in my position (if I was back in South Africa I would be “up shit stream without a paddle” ….. as the saying goes!) I have discovered to my horror that the western medical system leaves a lot to be desired when it comes to the standard treatment of cancer. This is a universal thing, not just an Australian thing. Nutrition doesn't form part of a doctor's studies (surprising but true!) and Big Pharma is dead set on squashing any holistic approach to healing cancer. An interesting read for those who may be interested to know a little more.
RADICALLY CHANGE MY DIET:
I switched to a 95% raw, organic vegan, regular juicing diet, which has resulted in me dropping 20kgs (they needed to go) and to be honest, I have never felt better! On the advice of one of the many experts I have been speaking to, I have recently introduced grass fed beef and/or organic, free range chicken once or twice a week. I drink only filtered water which I get for free from the wonderful John at Power Labs in Fremantle. I also gave up alcohol. As most of my family and friends know, I do enjoy a good wine, but with cancer, this is a total no-no. Cancer thrives on sugar, so all refined sugar has been eliminated. Was it difficult? For sure. But with finances being what they were, any money I was getting from CentreLink was only going to be spent on getting my body into prime condition by good, wholesome nutrition and healing supplements etc. And while wine would have certainly come in handy at those times when I have just wanted to drown my sorrows, it sadly had to go. I have also got rid of all toxic substances in my laundry, kitchen and bathroom cupboards and now only use all natural products. There are some incredible all natural cosmetics and skincare products made here in Australia. My sister Gill introduced me to a wonderful brand called Modere that I hope to start promoting in due course. Its also pretty amazing what one can make from normal household products to clean grout!! Its not only about what one puts into one’s body, but also what one puts onto ones body that needs to be considered. After all our skin is the largest organ in our body and toxic substances are quickly absorbed into our blood stream. Amazing – at the tender age of 63, almost 64, I am learning things that are should be so glaringly obvious. Duh!!! Did I say almost 64? Yikes, how did that happen? Last time I looked I was about the same age as my eldest son. Whew life sure flies by in a flash! I'm determined to make the next 20 years sooooo much better than the last 20! The raw, organic food is going to contribute in a massive way to making this a reality.
INCLUDE HEALING HERBS AND SUPPLEMENTS INTO MY DIET:
There have been many serendipitous moments that have led me to meeting some amazing people with heaps of experience in dealing with cancer and the mound of tried and tested, alternative treatments available. Their willingness to freely give me their time and to sharing their knowledge and expertise with me has been overwhelming.
FOLLOW MY INTUITION:
I have held onto this in moments of fear and confusion, and there have been many! It is also vital to go with one's gut feelings when challenged by people with the best of intentions, but perhaps without a smidegoen of research. The key here is to to be grateful for the care and advice, but to stand firm. Not always easy to do but essential to one's feeling of wellbeing.
EMBRACE & ENHANCE MY SPIRITUALITY:
Having lost my faith in traditional religion a long time ago, I have spent the past 4 months working hard on getting back in touch with nature, meditation, prayer etc. I have by no means mastered this. I still have a long way to go, but its been an enriching experience and I am utterly convinced that this forms a key element of healing.
RELEASE SUPPRESSED EMOTIONS:
Once and for all I had to make sure that any grudges that I may still be holding onto needed to go. I needed to focus on love and forgiveness …… love and forgiveness of anyone who has done me harm, hurt me and/or caused me pain. There have been many. And also to love and forgive myself for any bad choices I have made in my life, and again, there have been many! This realisation has been truly empowering. Again, it takes effort but is well worth doing. Amazing how wonderful it feels to rid oneself of all those useless emotions. Only way is forward - no need to carry any baggage from the past on my back.
LEAD A LESS STRESSFUL LIFE:
While this is often easier said than done, I’ve been working hard at not sweating the small stuff and flicking those moments where perhaps I feel just a wee bit sorry for myself. Not being judgemental, eliminating any guilt one may carry around (often for all the wrong reasons) and living a life with no expectations truly helps!
FOCUS ON ALL THE WONDERFUL REASONS I HAVE TO LIVE A LONG, HEALTHY LIFE:
This is not about not fearing death, but rather having truly good reasons for wanting to live. And I have many, many reasons for wanting to live for at least another 20 years! I have dreams to fulfil, goals to reach and important things to do. Yes kids, your mother is going to be around for a long time still. No need to start planning my funeral any time soon.
EMBRACE SOCIAL SUPPORT:
I am blessed with a wonderful, wonderful family and incredible friends who have all been amazingly supportive and encouraging. I thank God every day for each and every one of you. You are my richest blessings. Even those of you who are separated from my life purely by distance are precious to me and thought of regularly . Not much can replace lifelong friendships that span decades even if we're not in regular contact.
This truly has been the most incredible journey. Daunting but incredibly enriching and dare I say it, pretty shocking. While I have only touched the tip of the iceberg, the past 4 months research has opened my eyes wide. I have listened to hundreds of podcasts, read dozens of articles and books, and watched a huge number of videos, films and DVD's - all by various experts in the field of health, wellbeing and more specifically cancer. What I have learned has been gob-smacking.
I have recently had a further ultrasound which has shown that the tumour is contained, and that the size is exactly the same as when it was first discovered. I am told that this indicates that what I have been doing has stopped the cancer growth. This is good news! Knowing that tumours can almost double in size in a few months, I feel that what I am doing is working well. But the tumour now needs to be removed before I can embark on the next stage of my treatment.
While I really have only opened up the tip of the iceberg, what it has also made me to realise is that this cancer thing may truly be a gift. I have often heard cancer survivors say this and honestly never quite understood where they were coming from. I get it now. My dream, once I have healed myself, is to help other cancer sufferers realise that they have choices; not to tell them what to do, but to point them in the direction of some amazing people (a whole lot more informed than I am) and information that they can read, listen to and/or watch to help them reach a decision that sits well with them. I would never ever dare tell anyone that there is only one way. There isn't. Decisions have to be made by what resonates, not by what anyone tells you to do.
It also made me realize that my initial fear of, and reluctance to, undergo chemotherapy and/or radiation has very real substance - for me. I totally respect and admire anyone who chooses this route, and I also know that many have survived cancer choosing this option. For me, however, I am simply not prepared to opt for this as my treatment protocol. While the immediate side effects are absolutely awful, and I salute all who have bravely gone through this, for me it’s the long-term impact to my immune system and other deeply concerning ramifications of putting such toxic chemicals into my body that has me reeling away from this option.
So, next Thursday (25th February) I have a follow up appointment with one of Perth’s top breast surgeons to discuss what surgery I need to undergo. The two options are lumpectomy or mastectomy. I will discuss the pros and cons of both and make a decision as to which way I want to go. There were two opposing opinions by two previous surgeons I saw before Christmas, which led me to seeking a further opinion from this highly regarded surgeon. Over and above having her own private practice, she operates at Royal Perth (a public hospital for those of my friends who don’t live in Perth), which is a huge win for me. Yes she would prefer me to agree to chemotherapy. This is what all doctors recommend. It is the only treatment they know. But this is my body and my life we're talking about and I have come across too many horror stories about the effects of chemotherapy. So one of the really important things I have realized is that I do have a choice. My decision may not resonate with, or be understood by everyone but, after all my research, I firmly believe that it’s the right one for me. I pray that you can all respect this decision of mine.
Whereto from here and why this crowd funding campaign?
My surgery is likely to take place within the next three weeks or so.
There are some incredible cancer hospitals and clinics throughout the world, all doing some wonderful work with more holistic approaches to treating cancer. Obviously these are all very, very expensive and mostly far away somewhere in Europe or China.
I have looked at a lot of these clinics as well as the treatments they offer and the related costs. One which stands out is a lot closer to Australia and fits well with me, both from the treatment protocols they offer, cost and flexibility in terms of being able to continue some of the treatments at home. It is Immuno Biotech in Auckland, New Zealand. The treatment includes following the Ketogenic diet.
My friends and family in South Africa have also offered for me to spend some time with them for a few months to focus fully on my healing after I finish my treatment in Auckland. This is particularly appealing to me as it releases any pressure from my three children who all have very demanding careers and as much as they are willing and keen, caring for me while I heal would be extremely difficult for them. It is also the far cheaper option - the favourable exchange rate has the Aussie dollar going a lot further when it comes to food and supplements in South Africa.
The big issue I have is that I simply don’t have the funds to do any of this. Hence this Go Fund Me crowd funding campaign that many of my friends have urged me to initiate.
The $25,000 that I need to raise will cover my treatment for two weeks at the clinic in New Zealand, my ongoing treatment for the next couple of months at home after leaving the clinic, return flights to Auckland, and accommodation as this is not a live-in clinic (I have sourced a reasonable AirBnB room close to the clinic), return flights to South Africa, my continued organic food and supplement costs for the next 6 months. Unfortunately CentreLink stop all payments for the duration that one is out of Australia.
I have always found asking anyone for help extremely difficult. Perhaps it is because I am an intensely proud person. However, this is my life I'm talking about and this surely is no time to be proud. So while I am super embarrassed to have to ask for help, I truly have no option.
My plan is to hopefully be in a position to stick to the plan! So if you could spare any amount to help me reach my goal, I would be ever so grateful.
As already mentioned my bigger plan is to come back to Perth in the second half of this year and to offer my services to anyone on a similar journey who may be confused by all the information that is out there with regard to cancer. This fills me with excitement, and while there is still a long, tough road to travel, and no guarantees, I am determined that as soon as I am healed, I want to give back in a way that has meaning and which hopefully can help people find their way to making the right decisions about their cancer and journey back to full health. There is no right or wrong way, but it sure helps when someone is there to shine a light on some helpful info, to encourage when decisions need to be made, to lend an ear when they need someone to listen, to provide a shoulder when they need to cry and to hold their hand whenever they need holding.
My beautiful daughter Jessica gets married in December and while I am gutted that I am not in a position to contribute financially to her special day, my gift to her will be to be at her wedding in full health and with the promise to be around for a long time as a lively and healthy grandmother to her hopefully many children. She has been at every doctor's appointment with me, and while initially was more than a little confused and very concerned about my choices, she has taken the time to read some of the articles and watch some of the videos and seems to be a lot more respectful and supportive of my choices.
My two gorgeous sons are clearly going to be taking a little longer to make this dream of mine of becoming a grandmother come true, but I am equally determined to be around for when they eventually decide to settle down and reproduce their own little ankle-biters. I cannot wait! I want to be surrounded by dozens of grandchildren. I would love them all to call me Goggo (that's Zulu for Granny and is pronounced GawGaw for all my non-South African friends.)
Back to the money I am trying to raise.
A big chunk of the funds I am hoping to raise is required within the next month to secure my place at the clinic. As we all know its little steps that lead to the end goal. So any amount that you can spare will help and, believe me, will be very, very much appreciated. More so than any of you can begin to imagine. I will have you to thank for giving me the chance to hopefully live for another 20 years and to do everything I can to help others facing this frightening journey. That's the serious part of my plan!
Thank you for taking the time to read this. If you can donate to my campaign I thank you from the bottom of my heart.
Cheryl
PS: If anyone would like more info on some of the research, books, videos, podcasts that have formed the basis of my research, please let me know. I would be more than happy to share.
Organizer
Cheryl De Beyer
Organizer
North Perth, WA