A young ovarian cancer survivor recounts her harrowing fight against the disease and what doctors discovered inside of her abdomen.
Jennifer Teh, 29, Ovarian Cancer Survivor
“I went to see a doctor in December 2014 after experiencing sharp abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, and constant bloating. I also gained a lot of weight, my stomach was so bloated it looked like I was 32 weeks pregnant!” says Jennifer Teh in an interview with The Weekly.
While she was initially calm, the 29-year-old sensed something was amiss when initial reports could not identify what was wrong with her. After a second opinion, a thorough scan and a powerful x-ray, doctors found a 4.8-kilogram tumour in her abdomen that was about the size of a basketball.
“I remember crying when I was told and thinking that I was going to die. In March 2015, I had surgery to remove the tumour and then after that I was diagnosed with Stage 3 ovarian cancer,” explains Jennifer. “I had to go through four excruciating cycles of chemotherapy that even caused my eyelashes to fall off.”
“I remember crying when I was told and thinking that I was going to die. Cancer doesn’t discriminate, it can happen to anyone.”
The brave survivor recounted how her family and boyfriend rallied around her and supported her during her difficult journey with cancer, so much so, that it gave her the courage to fight back against the disease.
“No one in my family has ever had cancer before so I never connected my earlier illness with the big ‘C’, but now I realise that cancer does not discriminate, it can happen to anyone,” she says. “If there’s on thing I regret about my life before, it’s that I took spending time with my family for granted. I thought I had all the time in the world but cancer has reminded me that life is short.”
Jennifer says her diagnosis and cancer battle spurred her to completely overhaul her lifestyle and diet, opting to drink lots of water and eating home-cooked meals and fresh food. There is increasing evidence that the foods we eat may help to lower the risk of developing cancer. Add these to your diet today:
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