The Sunday Mail
Phillipa Mukome-Chinhoyi
Society Correspondent
MRS Mwaoneni Mupungi of Waterfalls in Harare is a troubled soul.
Life is no longer as smooth as it was for the 50-year-old widow.
Apparently, her life took a nasty turn after she was diagnosed with breast cancer and subsequently underwent mastectomy surgery about two years after losing her husband in 2012.
While the surgery saved her life, it, however, left her incapacitated.
Her misery continues to mount as the cancer has resurfaced on the other breast (left side).
It is like a déjà vu for her.
Mrs Mupungi is no longer able to do menial tasks that have made it possible for her to provide for her two children.
Doctors have warned that her current health condition was delicate.
Her eldest daughter is presently waiting for Ordinary Level results, while the last born is doing Form Three.
“After I found out that I had cancer on my right breast, I learnt that I had to undergo surgery to stop the cancer from spreading to other parts of my body,” said Mrs Mupungi.
She is currently surviving on handouts from well-wishers.
“The doctor told me not to carry anything that weighs more than five kilogrammes. This means I cannot go to work in the fields to provide for my family or do most of the things I used to do for survival,” she said.
Apart from struggling to fend for her family, she is also struggling to raise money for medical bills.
The widow is supposed to be undergoing chemotherapy sessions and routine medical check-ups.
“I was diagnosed with cancer in 2014 on my right breast, but the lump was there since 2009. I used to feel it but always paid little attention to it because it was small.
“ . . . the situation appears like a recurring nightmare. I now need treatment for the other breast, which has also been affected. I need to undergo chemotherapy but funds are not permitting,” she added while visibly in pain.
A couple that attends the same church as Mrs Mupungi and were touched by her plight, Mr and Mrs Mukwezva, have been providing her free accommodation.
“My wife and I have watched this woman suffer since she was operated in 2014. She used to rent in the neighbourhood, but because of her health challenges, she was evicted. She could no longer pay rent, so we decided to give her a free room in our backyard.
“However, my hope is that she gets decent accommodation because the room is too small to share with her grown-up children,” said Mr Samuel Mukwezva.
Harare City Council has also chipped in by allocating her a stand.
However, she does not have the resources to begin constructing a house for her family.
“At times I feel it’s better to go and build a plastic cabin on the stand. I feel I am being a burden to Mr and Mrs Mukwezva. I have stayed for too long, and in the event of death, I will have given them a serious burden.”
Despite the challenges she is going through, she still hopes to win the battle against cancer.
But her optimism lies in prayer and securing funds for early treatment.
Newlands Medical Centre is constantly supplying her with one of the drugs required for patients in her condition.
Breast cancer is a disease in which cells in the breast grow out of control.
There are different kinds of breast cancer, which depends on which cells become cancerous.
It often begins in different parts of the breast and can affect both men and women.
A breast is made up of three main parts: lobules, ducts and connective tissue.
The lobules are the glands that produce milk.
The ducts are tubes that carry milk to the nipple. The connective tissue (which consists of fibrous and fatty tissue) surrounds and holds everything together.
Most breast cancers begin in the ducts or lobules.
Breast cancer can spread outside the breast through blood vessels and lymph vessels. When breast cancer spreads to other parts of the body, it is said to have metastasized.
The global cancer landscape is changing, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) experts.
Statistics released by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) in December last year show that breast cancer has now overtaken lung cancer as the world’s mostly commonly diagnosed cancer.
*Those willing to help Mrs Mwaoneni Mupungi can do so through the banking details below:
Account Name: Mwaoneni Mupungi
Bank: Steward Bank
Account: 1005557767
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