The test results, which confirmed the terrible diagnosis, were received by the girl two days before her own wedding, and since then she has been desperately fighting for her life.
Sofya Balyaikina is 25 years old. Almost a year ago, she married Evgeny Balyaikin, midfielder of the Tom football team (now plays for SKA Khabarovsk). Then many envied the girl: she was young, beautiful, her husband carried in his arms, did not refuse anything. Sophia herself was sure that bad things would never happen in her life. And I certainly didn’t think about oncology … Everything broke down in one day.
Only Woman`s Day gave the girl a frank interview, telling how she is now struggling with a serious illness and which she greatly regrets.
Eugene and Sophia: at the wedding they already knew about the diagnosis
“I found a lump in my chest by accident”
– The first suspicions that something was wrong with health appeared in September 2016. Then my chest was combing, and I, touching it, realized that the chest was hard to the touch. I decided not to touch it yet, and then go to the doctors. I listened to myself. There were no complaints, so, probably, one could calm down. My friends and I were preparing a bachelorette party, everything went well, I forgot about the chest. But at some point she lay down on the sofa, threw her hand behind her head and realized that the sensations were strange, and for some reason her chest became larger, as if it had grown. And when I began to touch, I was horrified: a bump, the size of a quail’s egg, could be clearly felt inside! I made an urgent appointment for an ultrasound scan and an appointment with a mammologist. The doctor said that a puncture should be done. The results came two days before the wedding. The diagnosis – cystadenocarcinoma (a malignant tumor that most often develops in the ovaries and quite rarely – in the mammary glands. – Ed.) – literally rang out like a bolt from the blue.
A trip to the Maldives could give an impetus for the return of the disease
My mom had breast cancer 8 years ago. Then she underwent surgery, underwent four courses of chemotherapy, and nothing happened. And I have? What will I have? Of course, relatives immediately began to calm down and say that everything will work out for me, that medicine is not standing still, that new methods have appeared, and so on. I calmed down and agreed to the operation. It went pretty easily. At the end of December 2016, the tumor was removed and it was stated that the formation did not affect the neighboring organs, and that one could call my stage of the disease “zero”. The mood improved, and after 2 weeks I began to ask the doctors for permission to go on vacation. They didn’t seem to mind, and I went to the Maldives. Now I understand that the trip was one of the first mistakes. If you have cancer, aggressive sun rays can further provoke the disease. But then it seemed to me that if you sunbathe in the shade, walk in a shirt and spend a little time in the water, nothing will happen …
An unconventional treatment that only kills time
Even while undergoing treatment, the girl did not miss matches with her husband.
Three months after the operation, no medical manipulations were performed on me, and in March 2017 my breasts increased in size again and began to hurt. Back in January, before the vacation, I had tests, one of which was to show if I had a hereditary predisposition to the development of tumors (gene from my mother). But the analysis took a very long time, about 3 months. If this had been confirmed earlier, I would have immediately decided on the complete removal of the mammary glands. So the actress Angelina Jolie once did. And I am sure that it was the right decision on her part. Yes, Angelina already had children, but I did not; Yes, breast removal is not an easy decision, especially when you are 25 years old, but this is a solution! The solution is to get rid of the tumor once and for all, and the main thing is to stay alive. But the doctors, having received my tests after the second visit, said that there could be no talk of any operation now: the tumor had grown a lot and chemotherapy had to be started urgently. The treatment plan was as follows: 6-8 courses of chemotherapy, then surgery, and then again “chemistry” and radiation. The first course of “chemistry” was prescribed to me literally on the second day after treatment. Its consequences were terrible: the first two or three days you feel sick, dizzy, no strength, depression, tears. This is creepy. Plus, after the first chemotherapy, after 10 days, my hair began to fall out … My long curls constantly remained on the comb, and nothing could be done. I cut my hair short, then went completely bald. Thanks to my husband, who supported me during this terrible time, and continues to support me now. But I still cannot remember this without tears.
Between the two “chemistry” I thought only about how it would end faster. Did I then understand the complexity of the situation? No. It seemed to me that this was a terrible dream, and this could not be with me. Most likely, it was a defensive reaction of the body, or maybe youth and naivety. Do not know. And then I made the second mistake.
Now Sophia is reviewing photos from the wedding and knows for sure that she will still be happy.
Having hardly endured another chemotherapy, she succumbed to suggestions to start an alternative treatment. I believed that I must be helped … but not by the doctors. Chemistry had a detrimental effect on my physical and emotional well-being. I don’t want to give details, let alone give any contacts, I just want to say that from fear and rejection of my illness, I now pay an even higher price. I lost time, and now the treatment is much more complicated and difficult than the previous one. Thus, from May to August, I again received no medical treatment. During this time, my husband signed a contact with the Khabarovsk football club, we moved to live in the Far East. My health began to deteriorate again. This time, a large number of lymph nodes were inflamed next to the diseased mammary gland. I went to the hospital again. And here another shock awaited me. Khabarovsk doctors, having looked at the examination data, categorically declared: “You are incurable. There is no point in undergoing surgery, only endless chemotherapy will help you, which will kill malignant cells. ” I tried to argue that my mother had a similar diagnosis, and she still lives and feels great, to which I heard: “This is not an indicator! You have something else. The tumor is very aggressive. “
Of course, we immediately started looking for an opportunity to go abroad for treatment. Considered Korea. Seoul has good clinics with state-of-the-art equipment and oncology professionals. Now all hope was on them! We found the necessary hospital, got in touch with the Russian guys who, having a medical education, work there as consultants and translators. We bought tickets. I decided that I would go alone, though I didn’t calculate that the examination would be delayed. I will not list all the manipulations that are carried out with me, I will only say that healthcare in Korea, and most importantly, the attitude of doctors and all personnel towards patients is not even the XNUMXst, this is the XNUMXst century! Everyone smiles, cares, tries to relieve pain. True, the cost of services here is rather big. Thank God, so far we are coping on our own and the guys from my husband’s football team helped a lot. In Korea, I realized that nothing depends on me! I will not be able to calculate even the approximate time of my treatment, because it is not known how the tumor will react to chemotherapy and how many courses I have to undergo. I can’t plan a date for my trip home to Kazan, when I see my parents, I can’t literally know ANYTHING. And this unknown is frightening.
The husband tries to please his spouse at this difficult time.
A year ago, I understood perfectly well that there is the first half of the season, when I leave with my husband for the city where we have a contract. Then vacation, training camps and the second half of the season, vacation, camps and so on in a circle. And every segment in my head, at least approximately, was planned. I dreamed, made plans. And now all I have to do is accept this uncertainty and live only for today … Maybe this is for the best.
“I dreamed, made plans. And now there is absolute uncertainty, sheer delirium in my head and a lack of understanding how to live on. “
All stages of the disease: anger, denial, bargaining, depression – I have already experienced. After the operation, I dug into myself for a long time, in my head: why, where, why is it with me? Then she felt sorry for herself, cried a lot, but when she began to think about little children or about old, frail people who also have cancer, self-pity disappeared. And if I used to think about how I deserved such an illness, what I did wrong, who I crossed the road to or ruined my life, then when I looked at the kids who are not even a year old, and they are already suffering, I understood that cancer is not a punishment, it is just a disease. Severe, terrible, but illness. The other day, in Korea, I suddenly wanted to go home. To her husband, to friends … To delicious food. To a familiar speech … It’s hard to be all alone in a foreign country. Moreover, oncologists are not encouraging either. They are confused by the strange dots that can be seen on an MRI of the head. These can be metastases. So I had to undergo radiation therapy to the brain before continuing to treat a particular problem related to the breast and lymph nodes.
For her persistence in the fight against the disease, friends already call Sophia “Soldier Jane”
Now I am already in Russia. And in addition to medical manipulations, I try to support myself: I enjoy a sunny morning, beautiful flowers, delicious coffee. You start to appreciate it only at critical moments. I don’t have enough words to describe everything that my husband does for me … Thank you very much, my beloved! Without you, I couldn’t have stood it all. You my hero! And my parents, you are the best and most beloved! And I will definitely live, do not even hesitate, with such love, care and support – I have no other choice.
Currently, Sophia is trying to rest as much as possible and enjoy even the little things.
I remember how in Kazan, when I came to the operation, I was presented with a fact: there are no places. And we have already tuned in, drawn up the documents … In the end, we decided to buy out the ward. Only later did I find out that in these wards there were almost always girls who were doing breast augmentation in the same oncological center. And just imagine, I go into the room, all the thoughts about the disease, and at this time a girl gets out of bed and asks: “Are you also on plastic surgery? Are you laying down in my place? Help me carry the bag, otherwise after the operation I can’t lift anything heavy, but you haven’t been operated on yet … ”. Then, for the first time, I acutely felt that a healthy person would never understand someone who was sick. And how fragile this line is – between the sick and the healthy. And how quickly can you cross it …