A retired lecturer at Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) in the fields of Quantity Surveying and Construction Management. A committee member of Prostate Cancer Society Malaysia (PCSM).

It all started in 2015 when I first experienced frequent urination and problems in emptying the bladder. I needed to rush to toilet very often especially at night. No action was taken until I came across the prostate cancer wall posters in the National Cancer Institute (Institut Kanser Negara, IKN) at the end of 2015.

Those prostate cancer wall posters saved my life! I went for medical examinations immediately in both government and private hospitals after realizing my urinary symptoms were pretty similar with those described in the wall posters. My prostate-specific antigen (PSA) level was 9.0 ng/ml and was given some medications.

However, the medications did not help much.

My PSA kept rising from 9.0 to 16.0 ng/ml. I then underwent a prostate biopsy in Hospital Sultanah Aminah, Johor Bahru to rule out the cause in the early 2016.

I felt absolutely sad and depressed when the doctor informed me that I had stage 3 prostate cancer.

The doctor then gave me a lengthy explanation on what prostate cancer is all about, its treatment and survival rate. He also gave me words of comfort and encouragement. I told myself that I had to accept my fate and stay very positive.

After a series of MRI and bone scan, I was given a few treatment options including active surveillance, radiotherapy plus hormonal treatment or radical prostatectomy. With a history of heart problems, the doctor suggested for me to go for radiotherapy plus hormonal treatment. I underwent radiotherapy for a total amount of 38 times from June 2016 to August 2019, together with Zoladex (a type of hormonal treatment) from April 2019 to March 2019. My cancer responded well to treatment and achieved a PSA nadir of 0.05 on 2 November 2019.

Alhamdulillah, prostate cancer has not changed my lifestyle drastically.

I thank Allah very much, for I still am able to carry out the normal activities of gardening, attending adult classes, organising children’s badminton training session and participating in the community works.

I tried to keep myself busy all the time and keep a positive mind. I am truly thankful to my close family members and friends for their supports in my cancer survivorship.