Louise Turner – The healer and teacher

Louise Turner, the director of Breast Health Foundation, shares her story of having two cancer diagnoses which ultimately led her to become a healer and teacher.

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Louise Turner (55) lives in Sandton, Gauteng with her life partner, Carien.

When Louise was told by a numerologist many years ago that she would become a healer and a teacher, she laughed it off. Today she is the director of Breast Health Foundation (BHF), an NGO established to provide emotional and informative support to those affected by breast cancer, and has helped countless men and women for the past sixteen years.  

Breast cancer diagnosis

In April 2004, by chance Louise felt a lump in her breast while showering. While on holiday, her aunt, a retired nurse, told her that she needs a mammogram. Once back home, she went to a private hospital, but they wouldn’t do a mammogram without a referral due to her age (34). She insisted, and a mammogram and ultrasound were done. A core biopsy was needed but due to Louise changing jobs, her new medical aid hadn’t kicked-in yet, so she was referred to a public hospital.

Louise says she will never forget how the diagnosis was shared with her. “The registrar doctor never looked me in the eyes once. She opened the file and said, ‘You have breast cancer. Go up to 495 and make an appointment.’ I don’t even know her name. I was just a number to her,” she says.

Even though Louise knew deep down that she had breast cancer, this type of delivery is an experience she never wants anyone to go through. 

Treatment

When consulting with the oncologist Louise made the conscious decision to surrender. “I told her to do want she needs to do to make me better. Sometimes in life you have to let go in order to move forward,” Louise says.

Louise had chemotherapy and recalls it as being rough. She had started a new corporate job and made a point of being at work every day besides treatment days. She believes this is where her resilience came in. 

“My team was great, but I needed to wake up every day and go to work. That was for me,” she says. “Many people say you can’t surrender and have resilience at the same time, but you can. There is a synergy between the two in that it’s a powerful perspective. Surrender to the things beyond your control and have the resilience to manage what you can control. It’s about finding a balance between letting go of unnecessary stress and taking proactive steps where you can make a difference”.  

The dark ages

In October, Louise had a mastectomy, and two years later reconstruction. She was prescribed tamoxifen for 10 years but only managed three years. This was due to being diagnosed, in 2007, with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), a chronic disease that causes inflammation and presents with pain in the joints.

“I was put in immediate menopause and between tamoxifen and the RA medication, I was in what my friends called the dark ages. Plus, sore joints are a side effect of tamoxifen which only made the pain worse. It was decided by my oncologist and rheumatologist to stop tamoxifen for my own mental health. But I was closely monitored, having breast check-ups every three months for the next few years,” Louise explains. 

Change in life’s direction

After dealing with two major life-changing diagnoses, Louise made the decision to leave corporate in 2008 and took six months off to reset her mind and body. She was also questioning her life’s purpose and realised her corporate-climbing-the-ladder-way-of-life was not balanced and concluded that the ladder wasn’t actually that important.

It was during these six months that her numbers and the stars aligned and she was asked to run BHF. “In 2006, I volunteered at Bosom Buddies, the BHF’s support group and became actively involved for the next two years. I enjoyed the volunteer work and found a community who understood my breast cancer path. 

A board member asked me if I would like to run it and my immediate answer was yes,” Louise recalls.   

Cervical cancer diagnosis

Four years into her new role at BHF, in 2011, Louise was diagnosed with cervical cancer.  “My menstrual cycle had stopped due to tamoxifen and chemotherapy but later I had a semi-normal cycle but then I noticed it was very erratic. It took me six months to go see a gynaecologist which was the first time I ever went,” Louise says.

The Pap smear result was abnormal so a colposcopy (a procedure that magnifies the tissue that lines the cervix and vagina) was done and the abnormal tissue was removed. Unfortunately, clear margins weren’t achieved so Louise had to have a hysterectomy (surgery to remove the uterus and cervix).

“Luckily the cervical cancer was caught early and again it came down to surrender. A hysterectomy was the only option and it was an easy option to surrender to.” 

Louise wanted children, but fertility preservation was unaffordable before breast cancer treatment. Then the RA diagnosis made her chances slimmer and with the hysterectomy, in her words, “It was done. It’s not on this life journey for me to have children.”

The joys and losses of BHF

Louise says there are many highlights at BHF but she believes what they do is the actual highlight. “Having patients come back and be in our lives for so many years post-treatment shows that we have made a difference in their lives and helped them through their dark ages. We also celebrate with them for coming through this,” she explains.

Losing people along the way, particularly team members, is the hardest part. “At BHF, we are a family so it’s like losing family members. We have lost 18 members in 16 years.”

Louise’s ultimate goal is together with The Cancer Alliance, as a collective of NGOs, to have one voice to ensure that all South Africans have access to treatment. 

“I’m so fortunate to have found my life’s purpose and it was having breast cancer that led me to this place.”