Boy copes with fasting and bone cancer
RANTAU PANJANG: “I will continue to fast for as long as I can manage, although this Ramadan I am being tested with bone cancer again,” said Abdul Afza Aziz Abdul Wahab, 18.
This is the second time Afza is diagnosed with the disease, after the first in 2017. In September that year, he was forced to undergo surgery to remove his left leg up to the thigh to prevent the spread of cancer cells.
Luck was not on his side as the cancer cells returned in early January, causing a massive lump on the right collarbone.
Afza said initially he felt stiff on the shoulders, and there was a small lump on the collarbone, but he never expected that it was a sign the bone cancer has relapsed.
“I was just beginning to feel better again, without chemotherapy or pain for a year after my leg was amputated.
“Today, I’m being tested again. I don’t blame fate. I will gather strength and continue with chemotherapy to get back to good health.
“I will also continue with fasting, although sometimes my mother, Siti Halimah Mohammad, 38, advises me to stop, when she sees I am so weak,” he said at his home in Jalan Sekolah Cina here.
In December last year, Afza received a prosthetic leg from the National Cancer Council. He intends to pursue his studies in computer and hopes to recover to achieve his dreams.
Siti Halimah is grateful and proud to see her eldest son so determined to observe his fast despite the pain.
“As a mother, my heart sank when I received news that his cancer has relapsed. But I must remain strong for his sake. I bring Afza to Universiti Sains Malaysia Hospital in Kubang Kerian three times a week for his chemotherapy sessions.
“We will usually rent a car for RM100 for a round trip. If we are lucky, some relatives will help send us there,” said Siti Halimah, who receives RM300 a month from the Welfare Department.