Patient Stories Series
(No. 8)
Fatigue, rapid weight loss, loss of appetite – these were some of the telltale symptoms, which prompted Josephine M. Oller to seek medical help in 2009. The diagnosis changed their lives – Josephine had chronic myelogenous leukemia (CML). Feeling hopeless, she even wrote a letter entrusting the welfare of her three children with her relatives.
However, with a loving family and strong support from friends and relatives, she managed to take matters into her own hands, and live a productive life for herself and her loved ones. While she was a full-time homemaker, her husband often went to Manila from their home in Calauan, Laguna to process the requirements for financial assistance for her oral chemotherapy and other medical tests.
CML is a type of cancer of the bone marrow – the spongy tissue inside bones where blood cells are made. This disease causes an increased number of white blood cells in the blood. Advances in treatment have improved the prognosis of people with CML; most people can achieve remission and live for many years after diagnosis.
What broke Josephine’s heart, however, was when their marriage ended in 2015. While she had to fend for her children, she also had to stay healthy for them after her husband left them. The failed marriage notwithstanding, and the challenges that went with it did not deter her resolve to go forward with her life.
She just had to regain the courage and confidence quickly to make both ends meet, while also making sure that their finances would be enough to cover for her own medical needs. This meant she had to go to Manila – on her own – to process the required paperwork for financial assistance from government agencies. Despite the difficulties, she makes sure that she takes her medications religiously.
Since January 2020, when she became an EPCALM-serviced patient, Josephine has been actively participating in the activities of the Foundation, which are designed to ensure a holistic approach in their leukemia journey.
Presently, she works as a Housekeeping Staff in a resort in Laguna, which provides for their family needs. As the sole breadwinner for the family, Josephine has managed to work daily, even during the pandemic years. She also gets paid for babysitting her niece’s child. Her hard work and determination have paid off – her two daughters are college students who both work on the side, while her son is a full scholar at the University of the Philippines in Los Baños (UPLB).
With her children in college, Josephine has time to focus on her personal wellbeing and, more importantly, to be on the road to recovery and wholeness. With her steadfast faith in the Almighty, she looks forward to more blessings from the Lord. Life, indeed, goes on for this “wonderwo-mom”.
(By Jelyn A. Levantino)
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