Keep going – Tunie
When asked about her hospitalization experience seven years ago, Ms. Tunie Chu speaks of it as if she were telling someone else’s story. In October 2016, she lost consciousness and her family called an ambulance. The doctors urgently performed a craniotomy on her. When she woke up, she found herself lying on a hospital bed with a missing piece of her skull and a scar on her head. She learned about the events leading up to her hospitalization from her family and friends, as she had no memory of them. “I have no recollection of what happened before the incident,” Tunie said.
Tunie had about 90% of the tumor in her brain removed through surgery, and afterwards she had to undergo radiation therapy and chemotherapy. Three months later, she began to feel that she was recovering and tried to return to work. She was able to cope with the discomfort caused by the treatment, but the “scars” left behind made it difficult for her to accept. During her radiation therapy, Tunie had to say goodbye to her long hair and continue to shave her head. She had tried wearing wigs or hats to cover up, but she always felt that this was not in line with her professional image as a secretary. “People usually think it’s rude to wear a hat in the office, but I still have to meet clients and attend meetings!” Tunie recalled her struggle at the time. In the end, she decided to share her condition with her colleagues, and the response she received was unexpected: “Some things may bother us, but when people around us know what we’re going through, they’ll say ‘you’re so brave, we support you'”.
It has been nearly 7 years since the onset of the illness, and there has been no recurrence since. Tunie admits that she is very lucky. She still remembers the shock she felt when she found out online that she had been diagnosed with glioblastoma (GBM), “15 months is the maximum survival period? I was so scared!” Tunie cried many times because of this, but she decided to adjust her mentality, “I’m lucky! Otherwise, I might not have been able to be saved during the surgery.” She arranged her affairs, made time to travel with her family, and before she knew it, several years had passed. She still lives with the disease that has an unknown cause and cannot be completely cured, but Tunie encourages fellow patients with an optimistic attitude, saying, “Belief is the most important thing.” In addition to medication, she believes that faith is also an important element in fighting cancer.
