Amuge’s cancer appeared while in Senior One

Sarah Amuge, a resident of Katakwi District, realised that she had a swelling on her right breast in 2010.

But as a teenager in Senior One then, she did not mind even after being told she needed to visit a hospital.

After two years, however, the fear of having breast cancer and dying without producing children struck her mind and she escaped from school while in Senior Three to get married.

“I didn't want my breast to be cut off because I knew I would die without producing a child, so I got a man who then impregnated me," Ms Amuge says.

She also says students at school used to laugh at her breasts.

After getting married, the pain in her breast intensified and when she visited Katakwi General Hospital, she was referred to Matany Hospital in Napak District.

Here, her breast was cut off in April 2012. After spending two months at Matany Hospital, medical personnel discharged her but with a strong warning not to do any heavy work for two years. With her condition, the man abandoned her with a two-week-old baby because he said he could not stay with a woman with only one breast.

“It was really a bad situation. The man who impregnated me abandoned me and up to now, he has never come back," Ms Amuge says.

She adds that people in her community used to call her a one-breast woman and this made her feel rejected and she could cry all the time.

However, she says she then developed the idea of starting a business given she had a child to look after. 

At 28 now, Ms Amuge is engaged in farming and selling roasted chicken for survival. She currently has five children.

She says removing the breast is not the end of the world and encourages victims of cancer to be strong and patient, saying acceptance is one way of healing.

“Do not fear to reach out to the medical personnel in case of any pain in your body, follow what the medical workers tell you to do. This will help you a lot," Ms Amuge says.