Cheryl Perez: Fighting cancer brings a recognition of how fleeting life is

When she found out she had breast cancer, Cheryl Perez thought it was a death sentence. Now, the 66-year-old has turned the experience into an inspiration to herself and others.

Perez discovered a “seed” in one of her breasts in May 2008 while she was showering at the gym after exercising. Since it was not painful, she ignored it but it bothered her every time she showered and felt it.

About two weeks later, she mentioned the lump to a co-worker who insisted she have it checked. The co-worker then mentioned it to her supervisor who gave her some time off to visit the Trinidad and Tobago Cancer Society.

There, the doctor performed a manual breast exam and an ultrasound. He then performed a fine needle aspiration on the lump and sent the tissue to be tested. However, he warned her that he was 95 per cent sure that it was cancerous, and he was right.

Several days later, a good friend, a biochemist, saw her lab results even before they were handed over to the Cancer Society. That day, he went to her home to give her the news.

She told Newsday she had just got home from work and she noticed her friend, her son, and her brother on her porch, and she immediately knew something was wrong. “I panicked because my daughter lived in Toronto, and I looked at my son and thought. ‘I’m going to die.’ Because growing up in my time, when you hear cancer it meant death. I don’t remember hearing about chemotherapy and radiation and all that. The next step is death.”

He informed her she had carcinomas cells, which meant she had cancer. She recalled that she just smiled, put on a brave face and told them it was okay, that she was not going to die. “It was a very emotional time because my first thought was that I was going to die and leave my two kids. But I played brave and we talked but that night in my room alone, I cried rivers. Nobody ever knew I cried.”

A few days later she got a call from the Cancer Society informing her that she had cancer. With that official news, she told the rest of her relatives, some of whom lived abroad, and her coworkers. “I waited because, first of all I think I was embarrassed because everybody knows me going to the gym and doing yoga, so how could I get cancer? Then I didn’t want that sympathy, which I eventually got anyway.”

Perez decided to do a lumpectomy at a private institution.

Before that, however, she had to do a lot of running around for various tests which revealed she had Stage 1A breast cancer. Fortunately the cancer was contained, it had not spread and in the end the lump and 23 lymph nodes were removed.

She said she did not have the money for the surgery but she was blessed with friends and family who got together and covered the cost. However, as she was being wheeled into surgery, the anaesthesiologist confronted her, demanding to know if she had paid his fees, which she had. She was shocked and upset by his timing and demeanour and almost changed her mind about going through with the surgery, concerned that he might purposely harm her.

Thankfully all went well. She subsequently did chemotherapy, which she said was the only part of the journey she dreaded as she had long dreadlocks and knew her hair would fall off. Perez did go bald, but was grateful that she was not sick after her treatments.

She had four sessions of chemo, one every two weeks at one and a half to two hours per session, and felt well enough to drive herself back to the office and continue working after each treatment. There was only one day that she felt weak and lost her sense of taste. The month of radiation though, had more of an effect. She said she always felt very tired afterwards and now had brittle bones because of the treatments.

She recalled, after her last session of chemo, she was so excited she decided to pay a surprise visit some friends in Tobago. She cashed her paycheck and was walking along a track to her home to pack for her trip when she was grabbed by the neck and robbed by two men. She tried to appeal to their better nature, telling them she was a cancer patient and asking them to please leave her with her medication. Unfortunately they took everything, but after the threats and the fear she was just happy they did not kill her. Even that did not stop her though, and the next day she was on her way to Tobago.

Perez said she felt blessed with her family and her ten best friends who supported her through it all and treated her as normal. That was important to her as she felt the scorn of some co-workers while other associates made unpleasant remarks. She especially thanked her children, Omar Rocke and Neketia Perez, for their ongoing support on her cancer journey.

Since then she has lost three friends to cancer. Neketia was also diagnosed with cervical cancer just two years after she was, but thankfully she too is in remission. Despite her difficulties, she is determined to continue doing the things she did before she was diagnosed, even if it will not be as frequently or not as much. Therefore she continued with her three passions – prayer, exercise, and entertainment which for her includes, shopping, cooking for friends, and having people over to her home. However, because of her bones, she has had to slow down a bit. She has since picked up aqua aerobics, even becoming certified as an instructor.

Perez said she has a bubbly personality and loves to see people happy, and that desire has increased since her remission. “I think I live a life with more love. Talking to people, helping where I can – it may not be financially but to go visit, help them dress up... I think I’m even more adventurous. I take more chances because I recognise and appreciate how fleeting life is.”