This issue is full of Power People who are doing superb advocating and awareness in their own right. Even though this issue highlights the strength and resilience of many, it also shows the sad reality of what cancer patients have to face with medical schemes, public healthcare systems, and life-saving drugs that cost a fortune, all the while trying to defeat mortality. It’s doesn’t seem fair.
The good news though is it seems immunotherapy, pembrolizumab in a particular, is saving many lives as we see in Philip Botha’s story From preparing for death to living in wonder as well as Raymond Pleaner’s story Fighting the good fight. But one cycle costs R82 000, with most patients needing more than one. Very few people can afford these costs. Raymond Pleaner shares, “I’m not only advocating for myself but also for those who can’t afford it.”
Treatment declined by René Botha gives us insight on why medical schemes decline treatment based on evidence-based guidelines, and advocates to take out further insurance, if you’re able to.
We learn more about Clinical trials, thanks to Teresa Smit and Debbie Peters while Heleen Feldmann, who has metastatic melanoma cancer, shares The trial of my life.
No matter how many articles Bonni Suckling’s writes, tears are shed reading every single one of them. Read The unspoken long-term side effects of childhood brain cancer.
Remember we are all advocates, share your knowledge and let’s talk about cancer.
Laurelle Williams
Editor – Word for Word Media
I N T H I S I S S U E
Read Super Survivor Puleng Makhetha’s story I’m my own advocate and how she educated herself by listening to other survivor stories and then requested certain testing.
The 2025 Big C Survivor’s Guide: How is it diagnosed?
This year we have focused on the diagnostic procedures of various cancers (solid tumours, blood cancers, and childhood cancers) to help you understand what tests will be done, why they are done, and which doctors are likely to do them, as well as the referral pathway. Our hope is that this will outline what you can expect.
Check out the Big C Survivor Guides
We still have The Big C Online Directory to help you find any A-Z listing of all things cancer related.