‘God Only Saved Me from Dying of Cancer’- Corrine Rasquinha
“I was diagnosed with third stage cancer in 2009 as 18 lymph nodes proved positive for cancer and went through mastectomy simultaneously reconstruction, six rounds of chemotherapy and five weeks of radiation. All through I never asked God why me that too when I had made a real change in my way of living. Though people were curious to know. I knew all along God surely has a plan for me. As I was sailing smoothly through the course of my treatment I was struck with another blow- I was suffering from acute hepatitis B and I took a turn for the worst.”
“My liver failed and the doctors said I would not pass through the night. But my husband, family friends and the inmates of White Doves stormed the Heaven to spare my life. And God did hear their prayer, and I am still alive, it’s seven years now. In three months my body has cleared the hepatitis B Virus and also produced antibodies. 2012 pet scan showed signs of cancer. I had put my trust in the God for whom nothing is impossible. After already experienced a miracle of being blessed with a child when biologically I could not have children. And when what the world offered me failed namely artificial insemination and IVF. I witness for a God who is alive, listens to our prayers and does the impossible.” – Corrine Rasquinha- Cancer Survivor and Founder of NGO-White Doves.
Mangaluru: Cancer is a class of diseases characterized by out-of-control cell growth. There are over 100 different types of cancer, and each is classified by the type of cell that is initially affected. Cancer harms the body when altered cells divide uncontrollably to form lumps or masses of tissue called tumors (except in the case of leukemia where cancer prohibits normal blood function by abnormal cell division in the blood stream). Tumors can grow and interfere with the digestive, nervous, and circulatory systems, and they can release hormones that alter body function. Tumors that stay in one spot and demonstrate limited growth are generally considered to be benign.
More dangerous, or malignant, tumors form when two things occur: a cancerous cell manages to move throughout the body using the blood or lymphatic systems, destroying healthy tissue in a process called invasion that cell manages to divide and grow, making new blood vessels to feed itself in a process called angiogenesis. The World Health Organization estimates that, worldwide, there were 14 million new cancer cases and 10.2 million cancer-related deaths. In order to bring awareness about Cancer A J Hospital and Research Center in association with Roshni Nilaya of Social Work organized a Community Awareness Programme for Health and Community Workers on account of National Cancer Prevention Month at Roshini Nilaya on Saturday, 18 February 2017.
The programme began with invoking God’s blessings through a prayer song by students of MSW Roshni Nilaya-Mangaluru, followed by the inauguration by lighting the traditional lamp by chief guest-Corrine Rasquinha- a Cancer survivor and Founder od White Doves-a NGO that takes care of the needy and destitute, along with other dignitaries on the dais namely- Dr Prashanth Marla- Medical Director and CEO of AJ Hospital and Research Centre; Dr Jenis Mary- Vice Principal-Roshini Nilaya; Dr Naveen Rodrigues- Consultant of Pain and Palliative Care at AJ Hospital; Dr Kavitha- Oncologist at AJ Hospital; Dr Meena Monteiro HOD of Medical and Social work-Roshni Nilaya; and Ramya B- Student Convenor of Medical and Psychiatric dept.
Addressing the audience, Corrine Rasquinha said, “I was diagnosed with third stage cancer in 2009 as 18 lymph nodes proved positive for cancer and went through mastectomy simultaneously reconstruction, 6 rounds of chemotherapy and 5 weeks of radiation. All through I never asked God why me that too when I had made a real change in my way of living. Though people were curious to know. I knew all along God surely has a plan for me. As I was sailing smoothly through the course of my treatment I was struck with another blow I was suffering from acute hepatitis B and I took a turn for the worst.”
“My liver failed and the doctors said I would not pass through the night. But my husband, family friends and the inmates of white doves stormed the heaven to spare my life. And God did hear their prayer I am still alive it’s seven years now. In three months my body has cleared the hepatitis B Virus and also produced antibodies. 2012 pet scan showed signs of cancer. I had put my trust in the God for whom nothing is impossible. After already experienced a miracle of being blessed with a child when biologically I could not have children. And when what the world offered me failed namely artificial insemination and IVF. I witness for a God who is alive, listens to our prayers and does the impossible”, added Rasquinha.
Also addressing the audience, Dr Prashanth Marla said, “Many cancers can be cured these days. More than 7 out of 10 children are cured of cancer. Testicular cancer, Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and many cases of leukemia can all be cured in adults with current treatments. Most skin cancers are cured with surgery. And many cases of thyroid cancer and cancer of the larynx (voice box) are cured with radiotherapy. Many other types of cancer are also cured if they are found early enough. Of course, there is still a long way to go before we can cure most cancers. The difficulty is that different cancers are caused by different things, so there isn’t one strategy that can prevent them. They also respond to different treatments so no one treatment can cure them all.”
“There is a lot of research going on into all types of cancer to try and cure more people. Cancer researchers work on developing new and more effective surgery techniques, radiotherapy and chemotherapy drugs all the time. Biological therapies such as cancer vaccines, monoclonal antibodies and gene therapies are all active areas of research. Researchers are developing anti-angiogenic drugs that can stop cancers from growing the blood vessels that they need. Research is also looking into developing cost-effective ways of screening for the different common cancers so they can be diagnosed early enough to be cured. So seeing a doctor at the early stage when you develop certain symptoms will help in preventing Cancer”, added Dr Marla.
Dr Jenis Mary also spoke and briefed about the contribution done to the community by students of Roshni Nilaya. Following the formal programme, Dr Naveen Rodrigues and Dr Kavitha, both being the resource persons of the day shared their views and news on Cancer during the whole morning sessions, which was very much enjoyed by the delegates,.The vote of thanks was proposed by Maria Fernandes, a Social Worker, and the event was compered by Princy, student of MSW. Sessions on the topic of Cancer was conducted by Dr Naveen Rodrigues and Dr Kavitha.
