Cancer-stricken Pinay visual artist in UAE gets outpouring of support

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — It takes a village to raise a child. Or help the cancer-stricken survive.

Such has been the story of 48-year-old Jeanelyn Jarder, who after being diagnosed with breast cancer two years ago, received an outpouring of support from friends and strangers alike to help her get through her darkest hour.

“I am lucky to be a product of our Bayanihan spirit, where our friends helped us. People from different communities came together to ensure that I finish my six chemotherapy sessions. Our peers did not abandon us. Good karma, I must say,” said Jarder, who holds a degree in interior designing from La Consolacion College – Bacolod, and is a celebrated visual artist here.

Support came in various ways – from random acts, to offers of footing the bill on some of the expenses. Hot meal that Jarder prepared and sold to help raise money, spread around, bought by her friends and then her friends’ friends and finally, by strangers. 

Jarder recalled a moment when she was selling some of her house plants, and people of different nationalities showed up to buy, including a lady from India, who offered to pay for a session of her radiotherapy.

“She said, ‘Go and have one more session. The next days, God will provide,’” Jarder shared. She said she was actually planning to stop going for treatment back then to avoid incurring more debts.

These days, Jarder is into a start-up food business with support from friends who helped do the paperwork and secure permits. She said she keeps herself busy, even when undergoing treatment, as long as her body would allow her.

“I easily get tired sometimes, especially during the treatment stages. There were times I couldn’t do anything because I was not feeling well. There were instances too, when I didn’t have an appetite to eat. But I always try to eat well, else I’d lose strength. I also always make sure to set my mind in the highest spirit every day,” Jarder said.

Treatments, therapies

In all, Jarder has gone through six chemotherapy sessions done every three weeks, followed by 33 sessions of radiotherapy and two surgeries, the second done after doctors learned that the cancer started growing again. This month, Jarder will  undergo a PET scan to determine if she still has cancer.

According to Jarder, the chemo sessions and tests, including biopsy, cost approximately AED70,000. The 33 radiotherapy treatments cost more than AED92,000 shouldered in part by Friends of Cancer Patients (FOCP), a civic group. Jarder and her husband still owe Advance Care Oncology Center, from where she had the treatments, AED25,000.

To help raise money, Jarder said plans are afoot to hold a fundraiser and sell her artworks. “Hopefully, by the end of the year,” she said.

To help raise money, Jarder says plans are afoot to hold a fundraiser and sell her artworks. Contributed photo

Looking back, Jarder said it has been a tough ride with no end in sight as of yet. Her ordeal began in August of 2022, when she noticed a mass on the left side of her breast and mistook it for muscle sprain. A month later, she noticed that the mass has grown bigger. The cancer was confirmed in October, following medical tests. 

“It was only then that things slowly sank in – I have it,” Jarder said.

She said she didn’t bother asking what stage of cancer it was. “It’s much easier to handle that I know I have (cancer) no matter what stage. But I learned I have a grade 3 tumor ductal carcinoma,” Jarder said. 

A  grade 3 tumor ductal carcinoma is the most aggressive type and more likely to spread and grow faster, according to oncologists.   

Dr. Mohanad Diab, renowned consultant in the field of oncology to whom Jarder was referred, recommended that she commence chemotherapy.

“The doctors who were with me in this journey were very kind,” said Jarder. 

Aside from Dr. Diab, two other specialists helped Jarder – Dr. Riyad Bendardaf, professor and senior consultant of medical oncology at University Hospital Sharjah (UHS); and Dr. TareK  Ibrahim Mahdi, surgeon, also at UHS. 

Worst time

Jarder said it was the worst time for her to be diagnosed with breast cancer. 

“It was a very challenging moment for us since we were in a deep financial (bind). My insurance has expired and we could not afford to renew it due to its premium. 

“Bills were piling up. We were paying upfront for all the laboratory tests. We realized we were slowly getting drained. I started applying for charities, trying to seek help and find directions,” Jarder said.

Jarder has stopped working for the past nine years prior to the diagnosis, tending to her visual artworks, her passion, while spending time on community activities and with charitable groups.
 
Her husband has resigned in the same year she was diagnosed and started a small business instead. 

“We were forced to (leave) our house (and move elsewhere) so we could work on a certain budget. We lost our car. We gave away our stuff. We moved from one place to another,” Jarder said. The couple settled in Sharjah, where rents were relatively cheaper.

“I kept telling herself, ‘It’s not the end of the world.’”

Jarder said relatives in Philippines know about her medical condition, “but I don’t bother them because everyone already has their own responsibilities.”

Not yet cancer-free

Jarder said that while she is still not cancer-free yet, her journey has taught her to “accept things wholeheartedly and embrace the changes happening to my body.”  

“Cancer is not killing me after all,” she said. On the contrary, she added, “it is helping me become a better person.”  

Jarder started advocating breast cancer awareness last year. “I am always happy to give back to the community,” she said. —KBK, GMA Integrated News