Entisar has found a new centre of gravity; a place to land and turn the spotlight on herself.
“Wellspring is like my second home. Whenever I’m feeling down, I come to Randy O’Dell House and I tell myself ‘This is my new address’,” she said with a hearty laugh. “At Wellspring I can shine. I put all my worries to rest and I just come to life.”
Entisar didn’t always feel light and grounded at Wellspring. Her first visit to the location near her Calgary home was a spontaneous drop in, eight months after being diagnosed and treated for a rare type of invasive breast cancer. She was just finishing her LPN certification training and was stressed and sleep deprived. That day she was at a particularly low point, worried about her situation, and even more distressed about her son losing focus at school.
“I walked through the doors and I was greeted by the centre manager and a volunteer, and they were both so kind to me. I told them ‘I am just here to cry. I don’t need any programs – no yoga or exercise – I just want to sit down and cry.’ They brought me tea and let me be. I felt welcomed and safe,” she said.
Since coming to Canada from Sudan 23 years ago, Entisar’s life has mainly revolved around her six kids. Even after being diagnosed with cancer, her kids remained her priority, and she was careful not to burden them and give them reason to falter in their studies.
“Oh, there were days I was so sad, but I wouldn’t cry until the kids left for school. I was dealing with a lot – my cancer and also, I was dealing with my ex-husband’s illness. Around that time he had a stroke and then went into long-term care with critical illness,” she said. “Some days I would go from my appointment at Tom Baker Cancer Centre to South Health Campus where he was.”
But the day she found herself at Wellspring, Entisar says her life took a positive turn.
“Wellspring changed how I coped with all of it. I was better off mentally and emotionally. This was a place where I could focus on me. I learned how to manage my grief, my loss, my sadness,” she said. “I only wish I had found Wellspring sooner. It would have helped me so much in those early days.”
Entisar signed up for Yoga and Exercise and Educate, and she found it deeply comforting to just ‘be’ in the centre, immersed in a warm community of people who understood and accepted her. She brought her computer to Wellspring and found a quiet room where she could study for her nursing exams. When she passed, she set her sights to her career, and took Wellspring’s Returning to Work program.
“I learned so much in Returning to Work – not just about working, but about living. It gave me lessons that are helpful for surviving in life. I still say out loud some of the things I learned … about my health coming first so I can help others,” she said.
A little-known cancer
Entisar’s cancer story began in August 2022, when she discovered an irritation on the nipple of her left breast. While her medical team called it an abscess and did not consider it problematic, Entisar felt intrinsically that there was something more serious going on with her breast, and leaning into her medical training, she summoned the courage to push hard to have her voice heard.
“I am aware that there are cultural differences and there can be misunderstandings … communication can be hard, so I invited my neighbour and friend to come to appointments with me. She brought her iPad and took notes, and helped ask questions,” she said.
Still, delays in tests and treatment left Entisar feeling underserved and worried. When her breast became warm and firm, Entisar finally managed to get an appointment for a biopsy and subsequently, it was confirmed that she had Paget disease – a rare type of cancer affecting the skin of the nipple.
“The surgeon wanted to do a lumpectomy, but I had done my research and gotten other medical opinions and I knew that I wanted a mastectomy. Something inside me told me this breast has to go,” said Entisar.
During the surgery, a total of three tumours were found in the breast, even though only one mass showed up in the mammogram. At this point, her diagnosis was confirmed as multifocal breast cancer – indicating two invasive tumours in the same area. After the surgery, Entisar’s medical team confirmed that the mastectomy was the right approach. She then needed chemotherapy and Herceptin treatment.
When Entisar share’s her cancer story, she mainly wants to communicate two things from her experience.
First, that people should not ignore their own sense of what might be going on with their bodies and their health. Specifically speaking to women and immigrants who may not be confident in their ability to communicate and navigate the health care system. Entisar suggests finding a buddy, and applying tenacity and persistence.
Secondly, Entisar urges others to find their way to Wellspring for cost-free support and vital services.
“You don’t have to go through cancer alone, this is what I want to tell people. When I am well enough, I want to volunteer at Tom Baker Cancer Centre [in Calgary] so I can tell everyone to go to Wellspring, as soon as they are diagnosed,” she said.
Nearly a year after diagnosis, Entisar is finishing her last Herceptin treatment and hopes to overcome the fatigue and the joint pain she has suffered, so she can resume her goal of working in the medical community.
“I am a woman of faith, and now I have my hope back. When I feel stuck – I just come to Wellspring,” she said
