REGINALDA Muronga has surgery scars on her stomach to prove that she once wrestled with cancer for three years, and won the fight.
Now, she is a mentor to many cancer patients who are battling the same disease.
Muronga is the second-youngest of five daughters, and was one of the first to complete her Grade 12.
Her mother is a preschool teacher, and her father a police officer.
The 24-year-old is a business management graduate, and is currently doing a degree in accounting.
She took a gap year in 2013 and worked at a foreign exchange company, using the money she earned to pay for her tuition fees for the following year.
Muronga was diagnosed with stage three colon cancer in September 2014 during her first year at the Namibia University of Science and Technology. “I went to the doctor after I kept feeling tired, and had red discharges every time I used the toilet. At first, I thought it was because I was both working and studying, so I thought it was normal” she narrated. During the consultation, she informed her doctor about a previous medical problem that landed her in the hospital for a month.
In 2001, when she was in Grade 1, Muronga was admitted at the Katutura Intermediate Hospital after she had discharged a lump from the rectum.
She had complained of constant pain in her pelvic area before the dislodgement.
The doctors bandaged the growth as it was still hanging from her, and gave her medication. They did not operate on her as they could not determine what the growth was, or whether it was safe to remove it.
She was then discharged from the hospital, and the growth went back inside.
“The doctors told me that it (the growth) went back on its own because it was nothing. However, they said there might be issues after 10 years,” she said.
Fast forward 13 years later, and a doctor examined her, and immediately referred her to a specialist. Dr Perry Eagles did tests on her by inserting cameras inside her to take a better look at what was happening, and that is when they discovered a tumour.
“As soon as I woke up, the doctor told me to come back to his office on Friday with my parents,” she said.
Muronga explained how she became emotional as she was worried about what could have gone wrong.
“I came back on that Friday with my parents, and the doctor counselled me before revealing to me that I had cancer of the colon,” she added.
Angela Muronga, her mother, recounted how sad she was when she found out that her daughter had cancer.
“The doctor asked me whether there was anyone in our family who had cancer, and I told him nobody,” Angela recounted.
They operated on Muronga the following Monday to relieve her of stomach cramps. After her colostomy, only then could the doctors tackle the tumour.
Muronga went through chemotherapy and radiotherapy treatment for three months, every day from Monday to Friday. The radiotherapy was meant to reduce the tumour as it was too big at that point. Fortunately, the tumour did not spread, as it was stuck in her colon.
“Chemotherapy made me nauseous, dizzy and I had amnesia. I had to write exams around that time, and I would forget everything I had studied,” Muronga said.
She, however, continued with life, and made the most of the days that she did not spend going through the chemotherapy and radiotherapy regimes.
“A nurse motivated me to do anything I wanted with my life. I decided to go shopping and change my whole wardrobe. I bought myself my first pair of heels, and wore them that year.”
After the chemotherapy, Muronga went through tests to determine whether it was safe to remove the tumour.
She was eventually operated on in March 2015, and underwent a nearly 10-hour operation which was life-threatening. After her operation, she remained in the Intensive Care Unit for three days before being transferred to the normal ward for seven days.
Her cancer journey did not end there because after the operation, she had to undergo six months of chemotherapy to ensure that the cancer was completely eradicated.
During the last months of her recovery process, Muronga was assisted by a cancer support group, and they also assisted with co-payments for her operations.
She then met Sister Christy Kavetuna, a senior company nurse at the Cancer Association of Namibia, who later played a big role in motivating her on her cancer journey.
spoke to Kavetuna, who gleamed with happiness when she spoke about Muronga.
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