Life takes a turn when you are in your 60s, but I never imagined such a terrible one would accost me. I was careful with my diet, diligently exercised almost every day, and was active throughout the day, running between errands and helping my mother, who was in her late 80s.

I was an avid golfer who took up golf in my 50s when I faced the empty nest syndrome and my husband was at the golf course almost every day. I decided to try it out since I had been playing badminton, tennis, and squash earlier. I just loved it. It’s so true that it is a very addictive game.

One afternoon in November 2014, while I was out playing golf, I noticed that I was bleeding when I used the bathroom. Late that evening, my husband and I went to meet our family doctor. He examined me and declared that something was not right and that I should go to the hospital immediately. From there, it was one piece of bad news after another. I had the dreaded disease: cancer, and the very rare one called Pseudomyxoma Peritonei! I had never heard of it before!

We visited various hospitals and met many doctors who gave various opinions. Some said it was too late, there was nothing we could do, and suggested palliative care as the best option. My children flew down from the US and Paris and decided we had to do something, so we started chemo in a private clinic. I cannot tell you how painful chemo is and what damage it does to one’s body. A total of 11 chemos were done, and by the end of it, I could not eat because my tongue was scorched, and I lost 10 kgs.

One afternoon in February 2015, when I was so low on energy and had no will to go on, I was in a deep exhausted sleep when I experienced a vision. Suddenly, there was this bright shining light that came towards me and a golden beautiful hand that touched my forehead five times! That’s when I knew positively that God was on my side and He would help me survive. My family, friends, and neighbors from all over the world prayed for me, and God heard them.

Through God’s grace, in May 2015, we found an excellent doctor from Manipal Hospital, Bangalore, Dr. Zaveri Shabbar. He said it would take about 10 to 12 hours for the surgery followed by a HIPEC, which is a chemo wash inside the stomach area for 90 minutes to kill any remaining cancer cells. He said there would be many complications, but because I was “well-preserved,” I would be able to withstand the arduous surgery. Being well-preserved meant my blood pressure and sugar were within the normal ranges, and I didn’t have other illnesses. On July 7th of the same year, Dr Shabbar, my surgeon, savior, and saint, and his two assistant doctors did an 18-hour surgery on me, in which he had to scrape little by little all the cancerous parts, and in the process, I lost my colon, gall bladder, uterus, ovaries, parts of my liver, and spleen. I even survived two heart attacks on the operation table!

I slowly recovered with lots of help from my wonderful husband and children, who dedicated an entire year to my recovery.

During this recovery period, I just ate simple food like rice and dal, bread and eggs, no oil in any foods, no fibre, and no fatty foods. Initially, I was too weak to walk. Then, holding onto my husband, Abe’s hand, my first few steps were on the side of the golf course, where guests are allowed to walk. Every day, bit by bit, I increased my minutes of walking and started lifting small weights. No physio, just small exercises at home to build my muscles.

I would like to especially thank my mother and her dear friends who fasted and prayed for me fervently. My brother and family, sister and family, supported me throughout the crisis. What a miracle that was! By February 2016, I was good enough to travel, and we went on our first golfing trip to Vietnam and Thailand, played on beautiful courses, and thanked the Lord for His wonderful mercies.

Now it’s time to think, why was I so lucky to have survived? Why was I given a second chance to live?

Many of my friends and close family have recently lost their battle with cancer. There must be some purpose. So now I’m trying to counsel others like me who need help while they are going through all the processes of chemo, radiation, and surgery. I had no one to talk to while I was going through all this.

Susan Abraham