My battle with cancer

WHEN Ambassador Tonwe passed away on December 10, 1995, my grief was very intense. About ten days after his death, I was in the bathroom getting ready for the office when I felt a small swelling on the lower left-hand side of my neck. It was like a small button, and rubbery. Thinking that it was a pimple or an insect bite, I applied some hot rub to get rid of it. But three days later, I observed that it didn’t go. The activities in the bank, were always engaging and I left the swelling, hoping it would go on its own. After Ambassador Tonwe’s funeral ceremonies, I decided to pay more attention to the swelling which continued to look like a button without growing in size. I went to PISAM for a checkup. The doctor took a swab of the swelling and, after a few days, concluded that it was of no significance. He, however, referred me to Laboratoire du Dr. P. Montagnier (Analyses Biologiques et Medicales) in Deux Plateau where I did a more elaborate examination and blood checks on February 12, 1996. The results of the laboratory tests, which showed images of my neck and cervix, were written in French. I took the results to PISAM where I was given an all-clear pass.

That was the situation when I left Abidjan. However, on return to Lagos, I asked a French translator to tell me what the doctor’s report contained. The English translation read: “The size of my liver was normal; there was no stone in the gall bladder; pancreas was normal with no calcification; but there was a slightly enlarged spleen measuring 15cm in diameter”. I did not see a cause to worry. I let down my guards. For a long time, the swelling only increased marginally. Back in Nigeria, I threw myself into my job as Allstates General Manager, RBG-EAST. I travelled extensively. Several months later, I began to have night sweats when I slept and developed boils, particularly in my groins and armpit. I started travelling with medications like TCP, cotton wool and antibiotic powder. I used these items to treat the sores after I had expelled the pus from the boils when they ripened. I generally smelt of medications but the perfumes came in handy. As the days went by, the night sweats worsened. I would often use towels in the night to clean off the sweat.

Meanwhile, the swelling on my neck was getting bigger. I refused to visit the hospital because I felt I was too busy. I knew that I needed the attention of a medical doctor but was scared that I could be diagnosed with a more serious ailment. HIV-AID was raging at that time. Still, I kept away from reporting to a medical clinic. In the New Year, 1997, the night sweats did not abate and the frequency of the boils increased. As the boils were getting bigger, so was the pus. Then, in October 1997, I developed a very big boil in my left thigh. It was worrying. I was admitted at the Citizen Medical Centre in Ikoyi, Lagos where I was put to sleep for a surgery to expel the pus. I was completely relieved and got healed after visiting the treatment room for a number of days. What was puzzling about this particular boil was that I seemed to have been between life and death after the surgery but still I did not tell Dr. Olumuyiwa Ore, the medical director of Citizen Medical Centre of the swelling in my neck.

In early November 1997, I had an encounter with Mr. Osah Dick Osah, my colleague at Allstates Trust Bank and Deputy General Manager in charge of Systems. He is a pastor, a man of God, jovial, friendly, and prayerful. He told me he had a dream about me and I was very ill. I was frightened. The next week, Allstates Trust Bank had a meeting of its directors. As a General Manager, I was one of those who atttended the board meetings as an observer. On the board was a medical doctor, an experienced surgeon, Dr.

Adisa Senbanjo, the medical director of Jasen Clinic and proprietor of Radmed Diagnostics. He was a friend and classmate of Chairman Banigo. I told Dr. Senbanjo that I needed him to see something on my body after the meeting. When the board session ended on that day, Dr. Senbanjo came with me to my office. I took off my jacket and shirt to reveal the burden I had carried for two years. He screamed in amazement and immediately fixed an appointment for me to be at his Radmed Diagnostics office the next morning, November 20 1997, for a biopsy. I could no longer run away from the doctor because I had become very ill even though I looked uncharacteristically healthy.

The next morning, Dr. Senbanjo performed a surgery on me by cutting off a part of the swelling that had now grown to be very big. He also did a blood test which immediately revealed that I was anaemic despite looking extremely healthy. His early analysis showed that I did not have the full blood count I needed, which was the first sign of danger. The biopsy needed two weeks to ‘cure’ for the result to be known. The sample was taken to the laboratory and the wait started. At the end of the second week, Dr. Senbanjo called me to say he urgently wanted to see me. I knew that the worst could now be revealed to me, which could present me with the options of life and death. My mind wandered all over the place as I resolved to listen patiently to the doctor, to know the choices I faced. He said that the biopsy taken from the neck gland showed “greyish brown irregular tissue and sections of the biopsy of lymph node showed nodules of large pleomorphic lymphocytes and a few isolated histiocytes with focal infiltration of the capsule.” He added that I had “Malignant Lymphoma, Lymphocytic, Nodular type.” He concluded that I had Hodgkin’s disease, a Lymphoma. In plain language, I had cancer of the lymph node.

When Dr. Senbanjo mentioned cancer of the lymphnode, I felt that my life had ended. What do we do next, I asked? He said it was treatable if it had not spread over my body. He feared that, because of the history of my condition, it may have gone into my bone marrow, which would be fatal. The equipment at Radmed Diagnostics could not say how much of my body the ailment had invaded. Because I had kept my condition secret for about two years, I feared that my whole body had been invaded by it. Dr. Senbanjo sent a detailed report to Chairman Banigo and promised to discuss the treatment plan with him. The first option was that I had to leave for a London hospital immediately. This was barely a fortnight to Christmas, a time that my parents and siblings always looked forward to the family re-union in Benin City. When I returned to the office from Radmed Diagnostics, I simply picked up my bag and went home to think about the new complications in my life.

Meanwhile, I was yet to break this terrible news to my wife. She knew of my meeting with Dr. Senbanjo and was eager to hear it all. After dinner, I showed her the report from the doctor and told her I had lymphoma, the big C. She froze on hearing what I said. We cried and knelt down to pray. It was no comfort for her when I added that the doctor said it was treatable if it had not spread too widely. I was 45 years of age. My youngest child was less than two years of age and my eldest was 14 years old. My wife was only 37 years old, fearful of early widowhood. The children were too young to know what we were going through. When it was bed time, we brought them to sleep in our room. I could not sleep. Deep in the night, I went to hug the children one after the other as they slept. I prayed for God to save my life. I could not bear the thought of having fatherless children and such a young widow. The children slept in our bedroom thereafter all the nights preceding my trip to London.

The next evening, Chairman and his wife, Pelebo, came to the house. Mrs. Banigo has always been my adopted sister. I admired her a great deal as such. Chairman Banigo had been briefed by Dr. Senbanjo and he came to give me support and courage. He said I had to prepare urgently to travel to London for a first-class medical care and Allstates Trust Bank would be responsible for the treatment. He had discussed with Dr. Senbanjo and the necessary referrals were to be prepared for me to travel the next week. My wife and I were truly grateful for the show of support. Dr. Senbanjo got the documentation ready. The planning for the trip was much easier because I had a United Kingdom visa and did not need to visit the embassy. A round-trip ticket was purchased for me, to leave for London on December 18, 1997. Dr. Senbanjo gave me the results of the blood test and biopsy, and a letter to South Westminster Centre for Health at 82, Vincent Square, Westminster SW1, by Everton Street, in London. I was scheduled to see Dr. Frank Fogelman by 2.00 pm on December 19, 1997.

Dr. Fogelman had estimated a five-week programme of treatment for me at a cost of about 10,000.00 pounds sterling. I was given eight thousand pounds sterling as down payment for the trip, with arrangement for the office to replenish my funds, whenever I ran out of money, until my treatment was completed. Meanwhile, the bank would continue to pay my full salary for five weeks and will eventually absorb 50% of the cost of treatment. The balance of the cost would be recovered from appropriate allowances due to me while the outstanding would be converted to a four-year staff personal loan to be recovered beginning June 1998. At the end of it all, Allstates Trust Bank spent a fortune to cover my entire medical expenses and not one penny was recovered from me. That was Chairman Banigo in his element.

I called my friend, Mr. Osaro Isopkan, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian American Merchant Bank Limited, to inform him of my predica