I mention we meet Sylvia during my wife treatment. She gave us new hope. Here is Sylvia story :
https://sparkatncis.wordpress.com/2016/06/16/issue-15-voice-of-hope/#more-563
63 year old Sylvia Khoh, who was diagnosed with Stage 1 Nasopharyngeal Cancer (NPC) in 2010
In the flesh, Sylvia is immaculately dressed, her hair unfurling in
soft coils, her face radiating a rosy glow. Looking a little over 50
years of age, we were pleasantly surprised to learn that Sylvia turns 63
this year, as she chuckled and said that she gets this response from
strangers all the time. Her secret to looking young? A positive mindset, and always remembering to smile.
Sylvia’s positive energy is infectious indeed. While most people her
age look forward to enjoying their retirement, Sylvia proudly tells us
that she loves her job; the empowerment it gives and the satisfaction it
brings. A financial manager, Sylvia is presently into her sixteenth
year at her job and has no plans of retirement in the near future.
As Sylvia goes about her five-day work week, she also juggles her
time between her hobby – singing, a passion she has had since she was
young, and which she continued to grow after her friend encouraged her
to pick-up pop music back in 2010. After enrolling into the class, her
vocal coach discovered the unique tonality in her voice and propelled
her towards opera instead. A Teochew, Sylvia had to learn the Cantonese
dialect from scratch in order to master the trade. It was a challenge,
but Sylvia dedicated herself to perfecting the enunciation of the
dialect.
Sylvia’s hard work and effort paid off and seven months into classes,
she gave her first stage performance. Today, she is a seasoned opera
singer who regularly performs at the China Cultural Centre, NAFA, Lee
Foundation, Kreta Ayer People’s Theatre and community centres.
It would seem that Sylvia has it all – good looks, an established
career, a raw talent and a close-knitted family. But there was a time
when Sylvia thought she would lose her soprano and no longer be able to
perform opera, and this is her story.
It was during the Chinese New Year of 2010, and festivities were
running high. Sylvia had scheduled a line-up of performances but to her
dismay, found herself unwell in between performances to the point that
she was no longer able to reach the high notes. This affected Sylvia
greatly, as singing was her life’s passion. Suspecting nodules in her
throat, she headed down to the ENT Department for a check.
The check proved her suspicions right, as soft nodules were
discovered in her throat. But to her relief, her vocal chords were not
affected. Thinking that her worst fears were allayed, Sylvia was in for a
rude shock as her Doctor discovered two grained sized cancerous lumps
at the back of her nose and diagnosed her with Stage 1 Nasopharyngeal Cancer (NPC). Sylvia’s first thoughts were “why me?” and “how did this happen?”,
but she later accepted her diagnosis with calm and peace with the
belief that her cancer was a sign from a higher calling for her to
ruminate on her life.
Sylvia and her close-knitted family. She has one son, and two daughters.
Voice of Hope
Not long later, the side effects of treatment started kicking in –
sore throats, loss of appetite, drastic weight loss. Sylvia, who is
naturally petite, lost a total of 13kg, from her initial weight of 62kg
to 49kg at her lowest. Her friends jokingly teased her by saying that
she looked like a little girl from behind. Despite these, Sylvia took
everything in her stride and kept her spirits up.
She joined the NPC oneHeart Support Group
and actively participated in talks and support group activities. Sylvia
found the talks, conducted by professionals, especially useful in
coping and managing with her condition and side effects. Through the
support group, Sylvia also forged close bonds and friendships with the
support group members whom she still meets up with regularly for social
outings.
An active person, Sylvia also kick started a monthly walk at the
Botanic Gardens for the group to bond while keeping a healthy lifestyle.
To keep the group in positive spirits, Sylvia makes it a point to
prepare homecooked fare the day before to spur them on on the day of the
walk.
Sylvia and the members of the NPC oneHeart Support Group, at a Chinese New Year gathering at her house
She feels her cancer journey has changed her for the better, and her vocal coach has encouraged fellow students to “learn from her spirit”. And what lies ahead? Sylvia hopes to continue doing more volunteer work, pursue her passion in opera, stay beautiful, and most importantly, stay happy.
To fellow cancer patients and survivors, this is what Sylvia has to say:
“Be positive, never submit yourself to the disease. Know there is always hope somewhere. Make sure you mix with the right people who can help you, but never wallow in self-pity. I find that sharing my experience with others in the support group has helped me learn from their experiences as well.
Keep a healthy diet and lifestyle. For me, I make it a point to drink nourishing double-boiled soups every day. Root-based soups are particularly helpful for my recovery process as it helps build up my immune system to promote self-healing. I try to abstain from red meat and heaty food, but consume more fish, vegetables and manuka honey to soothe my throat. Today, I have gained back half the weight I lost during treatment.
I also meditate and practice qigong regularly, as this helps calm me down and increase my mindfulness.
The journey after cancer is more important than the treatment itself. Always remember to fight the disease and defend against it or it will be easier for it to beat you.”
