It's not very often that we hear men tell of their experiences with cancer, but survivor Darius Emrith has been very vocal about his.
The 31-year-old San Fernando attorney was named 2024 Global Hero of Hope by the American Cancer Society in November 2023, and he has been sharing his story of hope in various forums as a way of raising awareness and highlighting the victories people, like him, can have over cancer. He was nominated by the TT Cancer Society.
“Global Heroes of Hope are cancer survivors or caregivers who have demonstrated a commitment to the mission of saving lives from the disease...As a young adult, I want to show the world that cancer is not a death sentence and there is so much life, hope and happiness as a survivor,” Emrith told Sunday Newsday.
“I was diagnosed with stage three colorectal cancer in September 2021, when I was 29. It came as quite a shock.”
But the tell-tale signs had been there long before that; he just never thought someone his age could have been susceptible to the silent killer.
“Around the time when I started UWI, at 23, I would notice blood in my stool, but it was few and far between. And you know when you’re that age you feel like you’re invincible, so I didn’t take it seriously.”
Eventually, though, as the symptom prevailed, he went to see his doctor and was told it was the effects of internal haemorrhoids.
“So I was being treated for that until, in 2021, I had severe and painful constipation and surgery to remove the haemorrhoids was recommended.
[caption id="attachment_1080048" align="alignnone" width="771"] As a member of the TT Cancer Society, Darius Emrith says he felt confident to be honest and open about his diagnosis. -[/caption]
“I did the surgery in February 2021 and experienced a severe decline in my health. The bleeding was tenfold, and I was weak and lethargic; so weak that I couldn’t even stand in shower.”
Still, because he didn't want to cause anyone to worry, he chose to suffer alone. But when it got to the point when it started to affect his work, he suspected that something more was happening.
“I returned to my doctor because I thought it was post-surgery complications. He (the doctor) decided to do a CT (computed tomography) scan and saw a tumour in my colon that needed urgent attention.”
The mass, located in his rectum, measured 10.6 cm. Fortunately, it had remained local and there was no spread.
“I underwent eight cycles of chemotherapy, five and a half weeks of radiation therapy, two emergency blood transfusions and finally an ostomy surgery (colostomy) from which I now live with an irreversible stoma” – a surgically made opening of the colon.
And while he developed peripheral nerve damage to his feet as a result of the chemo drugs used, and he has had to learn to readapt to life after surgery, he is extremely grateful that he has lived to be able to tell his story.
“The nerve damage inhibits my mobility and it can be frustrating because I was very active before ¬ I did yoga, and went to the gym. But it is improving with med
