Introduction
The word "cancer" changed our lives forever. I prefer saying "our" lives because my bile duct cancer diagnosis changed not only my but my entire family's lives. My initial thought was, what would my daughter do without me? I wanted my daughter to have a normal life and I didn't want her to worry every single day if her mother was going to live or die.
2020 was busy with work, being a mom and getting my daughter ready to send off to college. I didn't have time for cancer, but cancer doesn't take appointments, as we all know. I was diagnosed with stage 4 intrahepatic, which is a rare bile duct cancer in the liver and the average life expectancy is not very long. It left me scared and devastated.
Being a fighter
I consulted a well-known bile duct cancer doctor in Kolkata who was recommended by our family doctor. He was very kind and empathetic and he answered all my questions patiently and after doing a few tests, he recommended I undergo surgery. He told me that it was the best option available for my condition.
My first surgery was eleven-and-a-half hours long and I received 14 units of blood. The doctor removed 65 percent of my liver and after that I started my chemotherapy. Ten weeks later, I had a recurrence and I had to undergo another surgery. I had my second surgery removing 25 percent of my liver during an eight-and-a-half hour surgery, followed by six months of chemotherapy.
It has been 2 years since my bile duct cancer diagnosis. I'm living a normal life and I am doing great. After my surgeries and treatments were done, my doctor kept me under observation for some time and I still go to him for regular check-ups. I was shattered after being diagnosed with cancer, but I fought back. I used surgeries and chemotherapy as my weapons and it made me see the light at the end of the tunnel. I am grateful to my doctor, who did exactly what he said and gave me the ultimate gift of life. I will always be thankful to him.
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