The Journey of a Lifetime [Part Four]
a short story...
Four
Doctor Harrison arrived in the afternoon and presented the results of the biopsy to her. The nurse had taken some samples of her living tissues to the laboratory for examination. It was supposed to reveal the exact nature of her disease.
He brought a chair close to the bed and sat down to face her. “I will notify your husband after our talk, but I just wanted you to have an idea of things first.” She nodded and waited for him to continue. Like the doctor, she sat down on a chair in front of him. She felt good enough to get out of bed alone and walk.
“The biopsy is done and the Lab has revealed the results of their examination.” He paused and looked at her. “The results show that you still have cancer cells. It never healed completely.”
She was expecting those words from him but hearing it in person just wasn’t the same as it playing out in her mind. The cancer never healed completely. She couldn’t believe it. She had so much hope before and now it was shattered. Her eyes just stared at the doctor and she couldn’t bring herself to utter a word. Doctor Harrison stretched and held her arm calmly to make her focus and stop her from thinking.
“I know how bad it sounds and I’m sorry. However, we don’t need to waste time and we need to discover your grade of cancer, so we can administer the proper medication to you. I hope you wouldn’t mind answering some questions.”
“No problem Doctor.” Her voice sounded raspy and she could barely hear herself.
“Normally there are procedures we follow as a hospital before we reveal such information to you as a patient, especially in situations like this. However, if we had known about this issue earlier, it might not have escalated to this.” He pulled out a blue handkerchief and wiped his forehead. He was trying to take control of the situation and make her feel at ease but she could feel he was having a hard time. After that, he adjusted his necktie and continued.
“The level of tumors and cancerous growth suggest that this did not start recently. Have you ever been to a hospital for breast cancer?” he asked.
She tried to recollect. “Y-yes, it was in Lagos a few years ago but I had surgery and we were told to receive some medication that the cells were dead.”
Doctor Harrison scribbled something illegible on his clipboard and resumed his line of questioning. “Alright, so no other form of treatment took place apart from the surgery? No chemotherapy?”
She nodded to affirm his question.
“I see, I think I know what the problem is now.”
“What’s the problem, doctor?” she asked with a worried expression on her face.
“Well, in dealing with diseases such as cancer, surgery is not the only way to eliminate the disease. Chemotherapy is usually taken before or after the surgery to kill cancer cells those stubborn cells. However, it has its side effects, so the doctor probably released you because you didn’t want the chemotherapy.”
She bowed her head and remembered the days in the hospital in Lagos. She was just recently married, with two beautiful girls. She was still young and beautiful, she had her whole life in front of her. It all seemed bleak when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. Her dreams and aspirations came crumbling at her feet. She wanted to go back to the University for her master’s degree and had plans about contributing her quota the society. She tried to dismiss the possibility that the lump was breast cancer, but when it became too painful to bear and other symptoms: nausea, diarrhea, and persistent headaches appeared, she was forced to give up and go to the hospital. She stayed for a year before having surgery and the doctor tried to place her on chemotherapy, but movies with bald cancer patients and patients with other side effects from chemotherapy discouraged her and she refused to take it. It would have been too expensive at that time anyway.
Now, fate had caught up with her and she didn’t know how badly she would be affected this time.
“I’d like to put you on a health plan and monitor you slowly but we can’t afford that luxury because we don’t have time. I want to operate on you and check how badly the cancer has spread and the effects caused. I would like that to happen tomorrow, what do you think?”
She didn’t have a choice. “I’m ready to do anything you suggest Doctor. Just help me, please.” She had been holding them back but now she couldn’t anymore. The tears flowed freely down her face. It seemed like her life was coming to an end. She hadn’t really been a truly religious person but now she found her mind searching and trying to find a God that she had abandoned a long time ago.
“That’s good to know. I’ll prepare the consent forms and get everything ready for the surgery, Doctor Harrison said with relief on his face. His right foot tapped impatiently on the ceramic tiles below, she could tell that he was in a hurry to leave this uncomfortable situation. After a few seconds, he stood up suddenly and adjusted his laboratory coat, and made to leave. He had a hand on the doorknob before turning back. “Please try not to worry too much, you need as much rest as you can. Just hope for the best.”
Doctor Harrison left the room noiselessly and she suddenly felt sick. She stood up from the chair and tried to walk without much success. Her legs felt like jelly, and it felt like she was inhaling a thick suffocating gas. The whole room seemed to be getting smaller and it was like her whole head was in a bucket of ice. Thoughts flew in and out of her mind at varying speeds and she couldn’t concentrate. Mental images of her family, her life, her aspirations, and her friends appeared before her, and she slumped down. She hit her head against a mammographic screening device before finally coming to rest. She tried to open her eyes but everything was black and she felt herself slipping away into unconsciousness. She wasn’t supposed to worry this much, but she felt something bad was coming.