“Smiling and being happy are the biggest weapons. In all my talks, I send out this message to the children who are fighting this disease,” said Alexandra Voyatjes, who was diagnosed with leukemia at the age of three.
Now eight years old, Alexandra says beating cancer is her biggest achievement. “It was a very tough journey, (but) I am glad I made it through,” said the young fighter who underwent treatment for nearly three years.
“I was in remission for two years. The periodic check-ups continued and now I am completely cancer-free.”
The Emirates Oncology Society society, in cooperation with the Gulf Cancer Society, had organised a celebration at Mohammed Bin Rashid Library on Friday to honour and graduate hundreds of cancer survivors from all age groups in the country. Alexandra was among those present.
The event, held to mark Cancer Survivors’ Month, aimed at instilling hope among cancer patients and their families, and spreading awareness in society that cancer is not a killer disease.
Professor Humaid Al Shamsi, president of the Emirates Oncology Society, said facilities for cancer treatment in the UAE ranks amongst the top 10 in the world.
“The advanced capabilities and medical expertise in the UAE are one of the best in the world. When anyone is diagnosed with cancer, they have little hope of surviving. About 70 per cent of cancer patients, however, recover, which means the disease is highly curable now,” said Prof. Al Shamsi.
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“There are hundreds of success stories of cancer survivors in the UAE,” added Prof. Al Shamsi.
Another survivor who graduated was Yasmin Hussain, a British expat living in the UAE for the past 13 years. “I discovered that I had breast cancer in October 2020. It was Stage 3. I underwent six months of chemotherapy and five weeks of radiation,” said the 52-year-old survivor.
Hussain has been cancer-free for two years now. “During my battle with the disease, what kept me going was positivity and support from my friends and family.”
“When I learned about my diagnosis, my first reaction was that I didn’t want to lose my hair. I lost all the hair on my body except those on the head. Every day, I would get up, look in the mirror, and tell myself that I am not sick. I would tell cancer that I would soon punch it away,” added Hussain.
Omar Hossam, a 17-year-old resident of Sharjah, was another survivor who graduated. “I know I am too young but I am finally over it, Alhamdulillah. I had complete faith in God that I will be able to fight it,” said Hossam, who had come to the event along with his younger brother and a friend.
It was in early 2013 that Hossam had arrived in Dubai to live with his father. In a few days, we learnt that I was suffering from leukemia.
“It lasted until 2022. Those were dreadful days and when I remember them now, I feel very powerful. During the treatment, people battling with the disease feel exhausted every single minute,” said Hossam.
“It were my parents and friends who motivated me to keep fighting until I became victorious. I am a very good athlete now and my fight taught me not to lose even in games,” said Hossam.
Many of the survivors were in their early or late 30s. One among them was Egyptian expat Ibrahim Elazaka who is an advocate at a private firm. “Cancer was something I fought very easily, but it was very difficult compared to my previous treatments,” said Elazaka, who had undergone angioplasty twice and an open-heart surgery once.
“My medical complications prior to cancer were the sole motivation, and my children became my strength in fighting the disease. A cancer patient undergoing treatment feels that death is better than surviving, but I had a reason to survive, and those were my kids,” he said.