Fearless warrior: Cancer killed her family, tried its best with her but she keeps on fighting
A true fighter, Fleur Marie Cilia Buckett nicknamed ‘Fearless Warrior’ has lost both her mother and sister to cancer, while also battling the disease herself for eight years.
Witnessing the bloody murder of a friend being stabbed to death also triggered problems in her thyroid. As a result, Fleur had to have both glands removed, which left a scar across her throat which she proudly calls “my medal.”
Cancer has been a part of Fleur’s life since the age of nine. She witnessed her mother passing away when she was just 17 and she took care of her baby sister all her life until she also passed away at the age of 39.
Her sister’s cancer had spread from her breast to several other parts of her body. “The poor girl just suffered from the age of 18 till 39. Four walls of the hospital were her life.”
“I put my life on hold for my sister, I left my job and I ended up on benefits. It was hard, sometimes all I had to eat was bread.”
Fleur’s father was also diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 88, two years before he passed away this year from other causes. Fleur sadly says “that is all my family gone now.”
“My mother was English, my father was Maltese. What is the likelihood of two strangers meeting and having such poor genes,” Fleur says with sadness in her eyes.
A year after her sister passed away, her father was also in a house fire and was very lucky to get out alive.
Through all of this, Fleur felt a
lump in her breast, which she recalls as being very painful. After being initially misdiagnosed, Fleur lost a lot of weight, withering away to a size six, and was in severe pain.
Fleur says she is very lucky to be here today since she was eventually diagnosed with a type of cancer in her milk ducts. She had to endure gruelling radiotherapy for six months, although she is thankful she did not require chemotherapy.
After her sister passed away, five years after being diagnosed with breast cancer, Fleur went in for her last appointment thinking she was going to be told she is in remission, which means all signs of cancer are gone.
With a stern face, Fleur recalls the doctor saying: “My dear girl, I need you to fight for another five years.” The first thought that came to Fleur’s mind was that would mean another five years without her motorbike.
“Motorbikes are my passion, my freedom, it’s the wind in my face,” Fleur says, the joy apparent on her face.
Fleur is now in her eighth year of battling breast cancer but has been given the ok to ride her bike and “I am never getting off it again,” she exclaims.
She still has to go to hospital every three months as well as have blood transfusions from time to time. In fact, she says, “when I see people giving blood, I say they are literally my living angels.”
Talking about angels, Fleur recalls how her sister loved angels and so one night, Fleur decided she would buy a pair of wings and for the month of October ride her bike around the country wearing these wings.
In fact, Fleur is now referred to as the pink ribbon angel and wears her wings proudly to raise awareness.
Fleur had to also undergo a hysterectomy to prevent ovarian cancer which meant she could not have children of her own. She explains, however, that prior to her cancer scare, she had already made the decision not to have children.
“I will not have children because I saw the grief my father went through burying my sister. I was not ready to carry over my bad genes to my child,” she says with determination.
Despite tragedy surrounding her life, Fleur stands beautifully in pink today addressing a press conference on the fourth Pink Ribbon Motorcycle Ride she is organising that will take place on Sunday, 28 October.
Starting near San Anton gardens at 8.30am, the bikers will have a police and ambulance escorting them during the ride to ensure safety. The ride will end in Baħrija at approximately 11am.
The President of Malta will also be attending the event at 9.15am.
Although no entrance fee will be charged for the bikers, donations for the Acton for Breast Cancer Foundation, which is very close to Fleur’s heart, would be appreciated. Funds raised will go towards helping those suffering from breast cancer and their families from a psychological perspective.
Betty Hanley Lee from the foundation explains how breast cancer is a family affair affecting everyone, including men. They have been providing this service of psychological support for over a year.