Nioca was diagnosed on 27th of May 2016. It did not come as a surprise to her based on her family history of having multiple persons (Grandmother, mother, aunt, cousins) with a similar diagnosis prior to her. She had held on to a glimmer of hope that it would not have affected her but that was not to be the case. Having been given the confirmation she shared that she experienced an initial fear, a feeling that most of us would have, given this kind of diagnosis. She however quickly moved beyond the feeling and became solution-oriented. She found out her treatment options knowing the history of her family and decided to have a complete mastectomy of her right breast even though she was at stage one. She also chose to do hormone treatment, an alternative to chemotherapy and radiation.
I questioned Nioca about her feelings of having her breast removed:-
“I know it is natural to be afraid to lose a breast but I am not a self-absorbed person, it did not make me feel less of a woman and at this point I was not concerned about my body image.
”Her survival was the priority, then how to move beyond her diagnosis, the surgery and get on the path of healing.
Nioca is very involved with the Jamaica Cancer Society and is usually one of the first persons that the society will call on to have discussions with others related to breast cancer. This is because of her passion to help women rise above the challenges associated with it. She has been interviewed on Television Jamaica and has appeared in the Jamaica Daily Gleaner as a source of inspiration and a means of bringing attention to this disease.
One of her greatest joys of being a spokesperson on cancer is the positive feedback that she receives – people will say to her that she does not look like what she has gone through. The result is that they end up saying “If you can do it, so can I. This brings her great joy and cements the fact that she is making a difference!
