Cancer patient misses school, hopes to become a veterinarian

KUALA LUMPUR: "I miss going to school, studying together with friends, meeting my teachers," said Puteri Jeslina Natasha Azlan Shah, 16, who has been suffering from brain cancer since last year.

The teenager, who previously studied at SMK Taman Forest Height, Seremban, can now no longer walk, and is forced to leave her school life behind temporarily.

"Before this, in school, I was active in sports, I represented the school (in) running, long jump, bowling, badminton....Now, it is difficult for me even to get up and walk without enlisting help from others, I cannot even clench my fists, making it difficult to write," she told Bernama.

She was met during the World Children's Cancer Awareness Day celebration, which was attended by about 25 children with cancer along with their parents here, yesterday.

Puteri Jeslina Natasha, who dreams of becoming a veterinarian, said she was diagnosed with cancer in August last year, after her hands and feet went numb, making it difficult to even clench her fists.

"At first, the doctors said there was a tumor in the spinal cord, but after doing the surgery, the cancer was detected," said the youngest of four siblings, who is now undergoing radiotherapy treatment at Hospital Kuala Lumpur (HKL).

Her mother Noor Aini Md Nasir, 53, who is currently making a living as a babysitter said she hoped her daughter could recover soon and resume her schooling.

Meanwhile, Mawar Jelita Husin, 45, also shares a similar grief after her grandchild, Isabella Natasya, was diagnosed with neuroblastoma cancer nine months ago, when she was only eight months old.

"Her stomach was growing, and after further examination at the Melaka Hospital, Natasya was diagnosed with stage four cancer before being referred to HKL for further treatment, and she had to undergo surgery to remove a tumor in her abdomen before continuing with chemotherapy," she said.

Mawar said the condition of her grandchild during the treatment was very heartwrenching, as it caused her to suffer hair loss, weight loss, and loss of appetite, apart from affecting her growth.

National Cancer Society Malaysia vice-president Clare Ratnasingam, who was met during the programme said the association would continue to conduct cancer awareness programmes to educate the public.

She said to help ease the burden on patients' families, the association provided accommodation at a fee of RM10 per day to parents who brought their children for treatment at HKL.