ABU DHABI// Princes Bolisay, like any other hard-working single mother of two, spends her days juggling family time with job commitments, all with a smile on her face. However, the 35-year-old is also battling breast cancer.
The Filipina is near the end of a gruelling 15-stage course of chemotherapy after diagnosis in November 2012.
Throughout her treatment, Ms Bolisay has remained positive, carrying on life as normal and continuing to work as an engineering sales assistant at Neste Jacobs in Abu Dhabi.
She credits her bright outlook as a major part of her recovery and hopes to inspire others.
“I noticed a lump on my left breast, but it wasn’t painful,” the Liwa Street resident said. “I was shocked when the doctor diagnosed breast cancer. After a week I was thinking how long would I be here for. Once I accepted the situation, I realised I could not change it. I still have my life and have to try to stay happy.”
Ms Bolisay has been receiving treatment at Al Salama and Al Noor hospitals. The chemotherapy has made her tired and nauseous. A further operation and course of radiation therapy is yet to come.
Throughout she has remained upbeat for the sake of her children Daschle, 13, and Kuhlay, 11.
“My kids are very smart and accept things when they have the facts in front of them,” she said. “They have given me a lot of love and support. It is making me stronger. I say to my friends they must check their breasts for lumps. I tell them to relax and don’t be sad as there is treatment there. They must face the problem and not be afraid.”
A decision to cut her hair before chemotherapy attracted many questions, particularly when she took part in the Terry Fox run in Abu Dhabi. Sirpa Hupanen, from Finland, who works with Ms Bolisay, said she is an inspiration.
“Princes is a wonderful woman. She is my hero,” she said. “Some days she has to take support, but she is still singing, smiling and joking, and openly speaks about her disease.
“She doesn’t hide anything from us and never complains. We admire her attitude, it is such a great example.”
Breast cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in the UAE, with the number of sufferers increasing by 20 per cent since 2009, according to figures released by the Dubai Health Authority (DHA).
Numbers released by medical institutions under the DHA show the average age of women who are diagnosed with breast cancer in the UAE is 10 years younger than in the United States and Europe.
Dr Shiva Harikrishnan, of Medeor Hospital in Dubai, said a patient’s chances improve the earlier the cancer is detected.
“If cancers are detected in the third stage, chances of survival are bleak at 57 per cent,” she said. “Cancers detected in the second stage have an 86 per cent survival rate. Whereas cancers detected at stage one have an almost 100 per cent survival rate.”
nwebster@thenational.ae
