“Mummy taught me to look on the bright side and only think positive thoughts, so that’s what I did!” Mr Javier Lim JUN HUI, 10 Student
Just before my sixth birthday, mummy took me to the hospital to have my eyes checked. She thought I had a lazy eye because I was squinting all the time. The doctors did a scan and discovered that I actually had two brain tumours. At that time, I did not really understand what was going on, but I could tell that mummy was very worried. She explained that I had two small balls in my head and the doctors would help to take them out by operating on me. I did not feel afraid before going into the operation theatre, but I remember crying a lot after surgery. I was in so much pain that I needed morphine to help me sleep. Mummy was at the hospital with me every day. She would stay up all night to watch over me. That made me feel safe. Over the next five years, the doctors found and removed five more tumours in my brain. Those operations weren’t as bad as the first one because I already knew what to expect. Mummy would always remind me that whining never helps. She taught me to look on the bright side and to only think positive thoughts, so that’s what I did!
When I went back to school, my classmates asked me what happened. They wanted to see my scars and the shunt that runs from my brain to my bladder. If they asked nicely, I would tell them about my operations and explain that the shunt helps to drain excess fluid from my brain. Some kids were rude or made fun of my scars but I would ignore them. My favourite subject in school is PE and I love to play basketball. When I grow up, I want to be a professional basketballer! I cannot do certain activities and mummy tells me to be careful because I have already broken two shunts by being too active. For my 11th birthday this year, I hope I get a BMX bike! I started shaving my head for Hair for Hope from the age of five, even before I found out I had brain tumours. In 2017, I even did it twice! I hope to keep doing it because it is important to raise awareness of childhood cancer. I want to let other kids who are sick know that they are not alone and to always stay positive.
I had to go for many sessions of physiotherapy and speech therapy at KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital after the operations and I made sure to complete them all with a smile on my face. The nurses are like my big sisters, “Despite his young age and medical they are always friendly. They would crack jokes with me or take me on “dates” to the food court to make me feel condition, Javier has an amazing attitude towards life. His positivity is infectious better about being in the hospital.
and has helped him through the tough One day, I reacted very badly to an antibiotic injection times.” which I was given to fight an infection. My skin felt very itchy and the nurses had to find a new vein each time they gave me the injection. After a week or two, I had to stop because of the allergic reaction. The experience was a bit scary but I just tried my best to stay positive.
Assoc Prof Jod Mehta Head & Senior Consultant Corneal & External Eye Disease Department Singapore National Eye Centre
Javier and his mother Mdm Sharon Ng 46