Karla Chavez had just survived a bout of thyroid cancer when she was hit with more bad news.  She was diagnosed with Stage II Keratanizing squamos cell carcinoma, a rare form of cervical cancer.  After a battle that including eight rounds of chemotherapy and learning she would have to wear a colostomy bag, Karla survived and resumed her career as a civil engineer in her native Honduras.

 

Her journey began in 2016 when she started gaining weight.  She went to a doctor who found a lump in her throat.  Even though a biopsy showed nothing unusual, he wanted to perform a surgical procedure to remove it.  The lump turned out to be thyroid cancer.  Karla was sent to an oncologist who told her she should be prepared for radioactive iodine, but before that she should be tested to make sure she was okay to receive radioactive iodine.  That was in January 2017.  Some of those tests were conducted were conducted by a gynecologist, as those tests took place, Karla was bleeding.  The doctor said this didn’t look good and ordered a biopsy.  Two days later, the doctor called Karla to her office and told Karla she had cancer.  Karla went back to her oncologist, who said she was Stage 2B cervical cancer, and that she needed to get on chemotherapy as soon as possible. 

 

The specific diagnosis was Keratinizing squamos cell carcinoma.  Karla Chavez was told she would not be able to bear children, but at the time of her diagnosis, she was in no physical pain.  She experienced bleeding during sexual intercourse, but when she bled on days away from her period, she learned she that was a symptom of her type of cancer. 

 

Karla did eight rounds of chemotherapy in conjunction with external radiation therapy.  Her care team was very upfront, saying once the radiation began, her fertility would be gone.  That news, said Karla, was the toughest part of her treatment, tougher than its physical aspects.

 

Karla suffered acute fatigue during her treatment, once sleeping for three days.  Eating and drinking were difficult because everything tasted like metal.  She also suffered cognitive issues, which affected her at work because she made many mistakes.

 

Her treatment had side effects that hampered her bowel functions and she had to wear a colostomy bag.  That was tough enough, but about 40 days after the surgery, she developed a rectovaginal fistula, a painful tear that developed between her vagina and her colon.  An oncologist checked it out and said the tear was 2.3cm wide, and that Karla would have to wear diapers.  She refused to do that, but does wear maxipads.  This was very tough because she no longer gets her period, but has to wear the maxipads to deal with secretion of these fluids she cannot control. 

 

In the meantime, it took Karla Chavez about six months to learn how to manage the colostomy bags and to find a type of colostomy bag she liked.  As a result, when she travels, she always has an extra change of clothes.  She has learned to deal with all these problems, and has learned to make her life as normal as possible.

 

Additional Resources:

 

Support Group:

 

Cervivor: https://www.cervivor.org