The road from despair to hope
At the time of writing, Maria, aged 67, has undergone a complicated operation, has completed post-operative adjuvant therapy and all recommended radiotherapy sessions and is convalescing with the best prospects for recovery .
The evolution of the disease was stopped, tumor formations were removed, including lymph node metastases. Complementary therapy, required as an additional safety solution, eliminated the potential risk that cells migrated from the primary tumor would remain viable. Maria told us that she feels, for the first time in a long time, safe and that she has the courage to think about the future, after the great suffering she went through. Investigations carried out three months after the operation showed him that he had every reason to hope that the terrible disease had been defeated.
But the road to the good now was long, complicated and, as Maria herself testifies, very traumatic.
Mary: “I know I got to the doctor very late. I devoted myself to my family, children and grandchildren, but especially to my husband, who is also sick with cancer and who had gone through a tough operation. I knew there was something serious about me, but when everyone around me needed me, my problem was not a priority. I kept quiet, I didn’t say anything to anyone and I didn’t do anything. But at the beginning of December last year (nn – 2023) I could not bear the pain anymore and I confessed the problem to my daughter. What followed was a very sad and very hard experience for me”.
The first consultation was at the emergency room of a hospital in Bucharest. She was seen by a gynecologist, who also sought the opinion of a dermatologist. None of them considered a malignant pathology, despite the major lesions.
Mary: “There was pain, fear, embarrassment, I was completely gutted. The doctors took pictures of my injuries and said they couldn’t figure out what it was, but that they would review the images in the coming days, with other colleagues, and give me a call to tell me what to do next. I have not received that promised phone call, even to this day. And it’s been over four months since then. This time I didn’t wait any longer and went to another doctor, whom I thank for having the strength to tell us that he assumed it was vulvar cancer, but also for sending me to Dr. Gheorghe Peltecu. Doctor Peltecu was my salvation!”.
Two weeks later, Maria had all the investigations done. The biopsy confirmed the malignancy of the lesions and the type of vulvar cancer, which was at an advanced stage. During this period, Maria was cared for by doctor Gheorghe Peltecu, being prepared for the operation, both physically and mentally.
Mary: “There is no way or words to thank the doctor enough. He helped me when I had no other solution, he supported me morally, he made me not feel guilty for my illness nor for the suffering I caused my loved ones, and above all he didn’t judge me. He spoke to me gently, calmly and understood me. He told me that it would be hard, but that I would get better in the end. And above all, I enrolled in a support program to cover the costs of the intervention and treatment in Ponderas Academic Hospital, and the effort of the medical act itself was pro bono. Honestly, I didn’t think there was any solution for me, until the moment I became the patient of Dr. Gheorghe Peltecu. God gave me what I no longer hoped for: a chance at life”.
