How I Battled & Survived Blood Cancer

• RIVERS Comm. For Health Dr. ADAEZE ODILI-OREH

Dr. Adaeze Odili-Oreh is the beautiful daughter of former Governor of Rivers State, Dr. Peter Odili. She went through a painful experience as a mother, the details of which has become public knowledge, but her saying it the way it occurred to her shows that people suffering similar experience should apply caution.

Below City People reveals how she survived blood cancer and subsequently overcame to start living a Cancer-free life and what it takes to survive the ailment. Below is what she told BusinessDay newspaper.

Dr (Mrs.) Adaeze Oreh is the first daughter of the former Governor of Rivers State, Dr. Peter Odili. She is a graduate of Medicine and Surgery from University of Nigeria Nsukka UNN, Enugu State.

Immediately after graduation she went into private practice at her father’s Pamo Clinic, a popular medical outfit located at Port Harcourt. Later she got employed by Federal Ministry of Health where she became a Consultant as a Family Physician and Country Head of Planning, Research and Statistics at Nigeria National Blood Transfusion Service NBTS having in her kitty over 17-years of active service both in private and public medical service to her fatherland. She has been deeply involved in collaborating with other policy makers in the Healthcare industry in and outside Nigeria.

She was Consultant Family Physician with the Department of Hospital Services in the Federal Ministry of Health Abuja. She is founder and Executive Director of Kaibeya Care Foundation which her way of giving back to the society. This is targeted at improvement of health, education and empowerment of women and the vulnerable members of the society especially those in the rural communities.

She was born on July 19, 1979 with her 44th birthday set on 19th July, 2023. She earned higher degrees in Healthcare from Imperial College of Business, London.

Dr. Adaeze Oreh is a member of the Governing Council of Pamo University of Medical Sciences-PUMS Port Harcourt, one of the first private Medical universities in Nigeria. She has been in charge of Quality and Safety at Pamo Clinic and Pamo University of Medical Sciences PUMS, Port Harcourt.

She has been of great value to her mother’s non-governmental Organization The Adolescent Project-TAP Nigeria which was established in year 2000 as a Co-Chair. This TAP Africa as it is now known focuses attention to rural and underprivileged girls, women, and children in maternal cum new born healthcare, including paying attention to women skill acquisition and empowerment.

From 2009 to 2014 she was Programme Coordinator of the National Blood Transfusion Service (Abuja Center).

In her work history she has worked with United States of America Center for Disease Control and Prevention-CDC, US Agency for International Development(USAID), US Embassy, US Department of Defense; United Nations; United Nations Children’s Children Emergence Fund-UNICE; World Health Organization-WHO; Institute of Human Virology Nigeria-IHVN; Safe Blood For Africa Foundation; International Red Cross Society;  Gede Foundation including having carried out healthcare programmes with various institutions of Higher learning and that of Faith based organizations across Nigeria.

Her entrepreneurial skills have translated in her being involved in the formulation of Blueprint for the current National Protocol for the Provision of Safe Blood and blood products during national emergences in the country. Dr. Adaeze Oreh is such a wonderful lady whose hands has created many start-up companies in Health, Agriculture, Wellness and Biotechnology areas of socio-economic sectors in Nigeria where she sits atop of most of the Boards.

She is such a woman who has continued to improve her skills academically as she has a first Degree in Medicine and Surgery, MBBS from UNN as she capped it up with two Master’s Degree and Post Graduate Diplomas from Imperial College London, London School of tropical Medicine and Hygiene and Harvard T.H Chan School of Public Health. She has been adequately trained as a Counsellor and being inducted into the West African College of Physicians and National Postgraduate Medical College of Nigeria with specialty in family Medicine.

This erudite Medical Scientist writes regularly in her quest to eradicate ill-health among rural dwellers as her Health safety campaigns has reached such stage where enlightenment via Radio Talk shows, delivery of Seminar papers in Health management, improvement in Healthcare deliverables in Biotechnology devices designs where she is a major voice in branding of such products. She maintained a Column in Premium Times an Online News outfit writing on contemporary health issues.

This hard-working lady of substance is married to Abia State born Engineer Patrick Oreh a graduate of Electronics Engineering and an Entrepreneur who had been manager at Total E & P Nigeria which is a Multinational Oil and Gas company operating in Nigeria as they have been married since 2004 and are blessed with two children. She is a pious Christian and a dedicated family woman with passion for Interior designs, Music and Arts.

With this intimidating background, she is currently serving as Commissioner For Health in the government of Siminialaye Joseph Fubara where she is expected to bring her wealth of experience and expertise to the development of Rivers state.

For Dr.(Mrs.) Adaeze Odili-Oreh life has not been smooth for her experience as Hodgkin’s lymphoma Cancer survivor. On 18th of March, 2022 she granted interview to BusinessDay Newspaper where she bared her mind on her experiences with the advanced Stage 2 of the blood cancer as said

“Every day I live in gratitude because about 17 years ago I was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. This is a cancer of the blood, and primarily affects the lymph nodes which are like a drainage system within the body’s circulatory system. So here I was, a recently graduated doctor, had completed my house job, recently got married to the love of my life who I met in UNN, and had just had the most adorable baby daughter. When I first noticed the lumps under my arm, I thought it may have been because I wasn’t draining properly following poor positioning during exclusive breast-feeding. After more than 24 hours, the lumps were still there, and the medical doctor started thinking of likely causes. I then thought that perhaps it was tuberculosis because of several patients who I had managed prior to this, and so I started carrying out tests. Every colleague who saw my test results advised I go for a second opinion, and that got me really worried as my blood tests were off the charts. At this time, the swelling was no longer just under my arm alone, and after more invasive tests like biopsies of my lymph nodes and bone marrow, I was diagnosed with late-stage 2 Hodgkin’s lymphoma. This was especially devastating because around the same time, Lynden David Hall, a prominent British R&B singer had died from it. I asked myself what the odds were. This was a celebrity in the UK with access to the best of health care so what are my own chances? But I was able to dig down and hold on in faith that my own story would be different. Eventually, I had to start the treatment and of course stopped nursing my daughter to begin several months of chemotherapy. I lost my full head of hair, and even my eyelashes. So, I would like to say I was one of the early wig pioneers.

“This experience was towards the end of my youth service year, but I was adamant that I would continue working, and so, I would take the treatments on weekends, sleep through the effects of the chemotherapy and then be back at work on Monday. It was a very trying time, but I had substantial support from my family – my husband was incredible, and my parents and my siblings were amazing, basically standing in the gap and giving my daughter all the necessary care and attention. I would say she got a lot of love in those months and so I’m very thankful that I came out of that experience and survived. But one thing that it emphasized for me was that if I went through that ordeal given my profession, family background, and the resources that I had, what would be the fate of someone who did not have access to any of these? Because even before the treatment started, the rounds of investigations and tests that needed to be done were all paid out of pocket. For millions of Nigerians, they are just one diagnosis away from poverty or worsened poverty. So that moment solidified my commitment to improved access to basic, quality health care.”

On her enjoying a Cancer free life after undergoing treatment she describes her feelings as dramatic one without any fear “to describe that feeling, I will tell you what happened months before I became cancer-free. Halfway through the chemotherapy, I was informed that suddenly my body was not responding to the treatments despite an initial response. If there was a point when I would have lost hope, this was certainly it. But somehow, again, I was able to call on God and say ‘Father, you initiated the process and progress up to this point, and nothing is too great for you.’ And so, I just left it and intensified my praise. At the end of my treatment, I was given an appointment to get the results, but the doctors were running really late, and I was getting impatient when I heard a voice in my spirit, “You are here to hear about my power and what I can do; just wait”. And then I just sat down and decided to be patient and wait. The doctor came out and said “Let’s go into the consulting room”. Again, the human mind – I wondered, “Why is he suddenly coming out to call me in? Why am I suddenly being escorted? Is he about to break some terrible news?”

I had just pushed away those thoughts and questions when he said, “Dr Oreh you are in remission” I put my head down, tears dropped down my face, and I said “Father, I thank you.” That was all I could say because I knew it could only be God. I received 100% chemotherapy in Nigeria coupled with my Youth Service duties and an infant daughter. It is simply amazing what God can do when we put our faith in him. Across the country, there are people being diagnosed with cancer, even now as we speak. You can imagine the impact of what that diagnosis can have on a family, but from my experience, I think the most important thing is to just approach it with faith. I am truly grateful because the outcome could have been different, and I am thankful because I experienced the love of my family in a way I had never experienced before. When one finds themselves in such a vulnerable position – and I believe many of us have people going through similar experiences – you can never underestimate the power of that outstretched arm love and support from family, friends, even colleagues and community members that will help them soldier on through that difficulty.”

When asked what it is all about that survivors of cancer need to know she said “there is a greater appreciation that you have for yourself, for your body when you recover from something like that. It is very important that you treasure that temple of your body and do everything possible to make sure that you are eating right, doing the right things to take care of your body just in appreciation of that miracle that has happened, because cancer is something that is still being studied and researched. Despite the many advances in cancer management, many people have fallen from the disease, and so it is very important that those of us who have survived do not take our healing for granted. For me, I also regard survival as part of a bigger plan for humankind. For me, since my experience, I feel beholden to those who we know to be underserved – those on the fringes of society with minimal access to some of the necessities of life, health, and the social determinants of health. I, therefore, feel a personal responsibility to use my skills and training to do whatever is necessary to open doors of access for them for the things that will make their lives better. Things like health care, education, and social development initiatives because I know that I was saved to do much more.

As a country, I believe that there is a reason why God made Nigeria so populous. Imagine the possibility of millions of people working to bring about positive change – so many possible heroes. Therefore, I am living a life of purpose. One thing that emerges from a lot of people who have had similar experiences to mine is that recollection, that remembrance that we were saved for a higher purpose.”

The current Commissioner for Health in Rivers State is a lady with much compassion for the rural poor and her interest in people having awareness for available health education and remedies to ailments has continued to be one of the reasons she finds ample time in writing as a Health advocacy Columnist and engaging in Broadcasting talk shows for the same purpose.