I am Nestor Bonifacio, a 68-year old family man who miraculously survived the fierceness of cancer because of the healing power of the Lord, the love of my family and FUDA Cancer Hospital.
I have come to realize that HOPE, the desire to live and faith in God are essential to one's survival. My battle with cancer became a life-changing experience. However, I had to experience months of pain, suffering and isolation from my loved ones before I developed and realized all these. Let me walk you through my experience…
My nightmare started when I learned from my urologist two years ago (July of 2007) that I was inflicted with prostate cancer. At that time, my doctor did not reveal the stage of cancer to me. I continued to live life normally bearing the truth of my condition. I asked for a second opinion and the second urologist confirmed with me the reading of my first doctor but did not also mention the stage four status of my cancer. I only learned the stage of my cancer after the second oncologist came along with a more detailed evaluation and interpretation of my pathology tests, bone scan, and CT scan.
Now knowing my real situation, I had decided to already inform my family and it came as a shock to them because I had kept the secret pretty well. I told them not to worry and I proceeded with my everyday life, undergoing cancer treatments provided by my oncologist, which were mostly medications. However, one of my brothers, Domingo, did some research about cancers on his own. He came across FUDA Cancer Hospital, and decided to attend one of their seminars in Baguio City, Philippines and met Dr. Kecheng Xu, chief president and owner of the hospital. Domingo shared my case with Dr. Xu and said that he can help me with their Novel Concept and Treatment of Cancer, which has had a high success rate. Immediately, my brother shared with me this information, but at that time I had a closed mind and thought that U.S.A. has the best technology in cancer treatment and the best possibility of a cure so there~s no need for me to go to China just to get my cancer treated. I believe U.S.A., which has spent billions of dollars in cancer research, was the leader in the world when it comes to cancer treatment and breakthroughs.
However, November of last year thru February 2009, my oncologist gave me more medications through the recommendations of an oncologist from UCSFH, one of the best cancer hospitals in the U.S.A. I then began experiencing the following:
a. Lack of sleep
b. Lack of appetite
c. Stresses, anxieties, depressions, paranoia
d. Not wanting to have visitors
e. Not wanting to speak on the phone
f. Not wanting to watch TV, listen to the radio and music, read newspapers, texts and emails
g. Lack of concentration and lost of memory
h. Severe leg pain and staying in bed nights and days with eyes closed most of the time.
i. Suicidal tendencies
Because my prostate cancer already metastasized to the bones, I experienced in March 2009 a hip fracture that I had to undergo a major operation. It was during this time, after 8 months of begging from my family, that my brother Domingo together with the rest of the family convinced me to go to China and try out FUDA Cancer Hospital. This was after Domingo found out that my oncologist does not plan to cure my cancer but to treat it because that was the only option they have at the Kaiser Hospital in California. They prescribed treatment but no cure. My oncologist said that the next stage of treatment would be radiation and chemotherapy, which are the conventional treatments for cancer but with a very low survival rate. My family encouraged me to go to China but I was still hesitant because of my belief in U.S.A.~s advanced technology and medical breakthroughs. This time despite my hesitancy, the family strongly pushed me to agree and left me no choice but to go to China.
Eventually, I agreed to go and chose to have an open mind. I said, “I would rather live for one year without pain than to live the next two years of my life with it.” On April 27, 2009, I was on a flight bound for the Philippines to get my visa and arrived in China on May 4, 2009.
When I arrived at FUDA hospital, the first thing I noticed was the fully-furnished room designated to me. It was like a condo unit and its good for accommodating the entire family. The next thing that brought my attention was the extra CARE of the top oncologists and the hospital staff for their patients, which was not present in my experience in the hospital in the U.S.A. At Fuda, they are always a beep away and ready to respond to my concerns, 24/7. I was often visited by the top doctors even the owners during my stay. I believe that was part of their entire Novel concept and cancer treatment package, which I believe was effective and very helpful to their patients.
Unlike in the U.S.A, FUDA Cancer Hospital prepared a concrete treatment and cure plan for me with an estimate of costs. They have combined modern technology with traditional Chinese medicines. It was a meeting of the East and the West.
The first thing they did was to take bloods tests, blood samples, PET/CT scans, and ultrasound. Their treatment plan included the following:
a. Cryosurgery – To freeze and kill the cancerous tumor in the prostate. This technology was developed in the US in 1998 but was not widely used. Fuda Hospital has the highest cryosurgeries performed in the world from year 2000 to date.
b. Brachytherapy _ 125 Iodine seeds implantation lethal to the tumor. Done during cryosurgery.
c. Combined Immunotherapy for Cancer – This is when they take 80 cc of blood and culture it to increase immunity function against cancer cell. FUDA is the only hospital in the world that does it.
Today, I feel fantastic. I experience no pain and I went back to my regular activities which I normally did before I got sick, such as working out, swimming, reading, watching TV, computer work, going to church, visiting relatives and more importantly, I am having a great time sharing my story and leading others by my example.
I feel very much well now and alive, ready to live a new life but with this new mission.
“To be a witness of the Healing Power of the Lord and Divine Love and be a living testimonial to others who are suffering from cancer specially for those who already lost HOPE”.
