Sandhya Puvvala’s dream of running a half-marathon came to an abrupt halt when she was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020. However, this did not stop the 45-year-old breast cancer survivor, homemaker and runner from attempting the half-marathon she wanted to participate in with her husband in 2022. Happiest Health caught up with Puvvala as she shared her inspiring breast cancer recovery journey during the Covid-19 pandemic and how she bounced back on track to finish the run with her husband.
Breast cancer survivor: Her early signs
In February 2020, Puvvala noticed a lump in her right breast but didn’t give it much thought as she assumed it was a part of her menstrual cycle. However, upon noticing that the lump hadn’t reduced in size after a week or so, panic set in. “I had missed my mammography test when I turned 40, so I wasn’t sure what this lump would indicate,” she recalls. Around this time, her husband was in the US on a work assignment, so his absence added to her anxiety, too.
When her husband returned after two weeks, they immediately consulted a physician who recommended a sonomammography. Later, she was also asked to undergo a biopsy to test if the lump was benign.
The results, unfortunately, did not look good for Puvvala, and her physician asked them to consult an oncologist to confirm if it was breast cancer. “Never did it cross my or my husband’s minds that it could be breast cancer because we had no family history,” Puvvala says.
Symptoms of breast cancer
According to Dr Poonam Patil, Consultant – Medical Oncology, Manipal Hospitals Old Airport Road, Bengaluru, breast cancer can often be easily deducted in the early stages if we know our body well. Dr Patil explains that some symptoms other than lumps can be also found in the breasts. “Lumps are deducted in 95 per cent of the people; however, the symptoms can be different for the remaining five per cent,” she says.
As Dr Patil explains, the typical symptoms of breast cancer are:
- Indrawing of the nipple
- Indrawing of the skin on the breast
- Differences in the size and shape of the breast
- Lump in the underarm
- Inflammation, redness or hardness of the breast
Upon consulting with an oncologist, it was confirmed that Puvvala had stage two breast cancer. Fortunately for her, the cancer had not spread and remained localised to her right breast.
In March 2020, on the brink of a nationwide lockdown, Puvvala’s doctor recommended immediate surgery. “I didn’t have time to process what was happening to me,” she says. “I had to go for consecutive tests. My family and in-laws had flown down to help us when I had my surgery.”
Amidst her cancer detection and the fear of covid, Puvvala was equally worried about her kids. “My daughter was just starting 10th grade, a crucial year, and my son was in third grade. They couldn’t really comprehend what was going on,” she says.
Cancer management during the pandemic
Puvvala shares the tumultuous journey she had to undergo as a result of her eight cycles of chemotherapy during this period. “My self-confidence dipped when I started losing my hair,” she says. However, her family ensured that her spirits stayed high. “They kept reassuring me that it’s just hair and would grow back. My husband would trim my hair every week until every strand was completely off,” she says.
However, Puvvala felt relieved that she had time to process everything by herself during the covid lockdown. “I had minimal to no interaction with anyone during that time and it was calming because I was not in the mind space to face anyone or talk about what I was going through. It would also have been excruciating for us sending our kids to school amidst my chemotherapy and radiation. Hence, the lockdown gave me time for recovery,”
Breast cancer survivor runs her first marathon at 45
Her treatment ended in August 2020, and by 2022, the avid runner was determined to fulfil her dream of running the KTM (Kaveri Trail Marathon) half-marathon. “Since 2015, we have been training for this marathon; however, my husband was injured in 2016, and it took him almost three years to recover. Following that was my cancer diagnosis and the pandemic. By 2022, my husband and I began our training once again and attempted four half-marathons,” she explains.
After her breast cancer recovery, they took part in 15-20K marathons, like Bengaluru Marathon and Hennur Bangalore Ultra Run. Through this process of training and participating in marathons, she regained her confidence.
As Dr Patil points out, recovery from chemotherapy depends entirely on motivation. “Keeping your mind and body active and not succumbing to sickness is the key. It is important not to overwork yourself too much or to be inactive all the time. For cancer survivors, their identity is not their illness, but how they triumphed it,” she says.
Takeaways
- Know your body and get yourself checked if you feel something is unfamiliar.
- While recovering from surgery and chemotherapy, stay active — both inactivity and overworking can hamper your progress.
