Cancer can change everything and chooses no one. Even the strongest woman that we know can be afflicted with the disease. For some, cancer is seen as the end of the road—but for many hopefuls, it is just a bend that one resiliently passes through.
Marites Marzan, a mother of three kids and a proud cancer survivor, shares how she faced cancer full of hope.
“At the age of 50, I was diagnosed with stage three fallopian tube carcinoma, an abnormal growth of malignant cells in one or both of a woman’s fallopian tubes. At first, I experienced spotting and abnormal duration of my monthly period,” Marites explained.
Marites got scared, so she immediately consulted her Ob-Gyne and she initially concluded that is due to pre-menopausal period. However, as time passes by, she experienced a lot of changes in her body. That’s when she consulted a doctor at a local hospital and was then diagnosed with fallopian tube carcinoma.
Marites continued, “Years down the line however, my treatment in the Philippines was not successful. I was again instructed to undergo another cycle of chemotherapy. A friend told me about Fuda and the new and advanced treatment in China.”
“Without second thought I took the risk and hoped for the best. Fuda’s diagnosis was the same on the local evaluation in the Philippines. My doctor was Dr. Chen, an Oncologist and Surgeon in Fuda Cancer Hospital. I trusted his judgments and recommendations on how to treat my disease. I told myself that I needed to heal for my family, that they need me, and that I need to live to win,” she continued.
Fuda Cancer Hospital is known for its personalized cancer treatment program. Dr. Chen gave Marites a Combined Immunotherapy for Cancer (CIC), a treatment done quarterly and Cancer Microvascular Intervention (CMI), wherein a drug is also directly inserted into blood vessels supplying blood to the tumor.
“Aside from CMI, they performed Brachytherapy or Seed knife, a procedure wherein a seed with iodine-125 or palladium-103 seeds (brachytherapy) is implanted in the body. Brachytherapy requires no surgical incision, offers patients a shorter recovery time, and has less chance of troubling side effects,” Marites expounded further.
She continued, “After sometime, I felt the changes in my body. Everyday I felt that I was gaining my strength and my hope is slowly being restored. I was given hope that I will see my kids go to school and seat with them during dinner.”
According to Marites, “Fuda is not just a hospital (sic) who treats you—It is an institution that restores your hope and faith. I choose to live, that’s why I flew to China. Each treatment equates to a new hope and life after cancer. I can say, that going to Fuda was a risk worth taking for.”
Fuda Cancer Hospital in Guangzhou believes in empowering each patient to have a new hope, to feel confident and a gratified life after treatment with the help of their advance treatment. With more than a hundred survivors, Fuda continues to raise the bar in treating cancer and each survivor stands as advocate to fellow patient in seeking the right treatment.
For inquiries, visit the Philippine office of Fuda Cancer Hospital at Unit 901-A, Centuria Medical Makati (along Kalayaan Ave., cor. Salamanca St., Brgy. Poblacion, Makati City, or call 0917-7753426 or (02) 507-3426.
Visit www.fudahospital.com or Fuda Cancer Hospital – Philippines on Facebook for more information.