Eloisa Oquendo and Joyce Melo were both diagnosed aged 37
Two sisters are fighting against a ‘nightmare’ terminal colon cancer diagnosis after being diagnosed just years apart.
The New Jersey sisters were given the unfortunate news that they had stage 4 cancer in their thirties and now they are both trying to come to terms with their new normal.
It was in February 2021 that Eloisa Oquendo took herself to hospital for severe lower abdominal pain and was rushed into an emergency surgery that they discovered her cancer.
The 37-year-old said of the ordeal: “That’s when they discovered the cancer. The doctor came in, and I was by myself, and told me I had stage four colon cancer.”
Sadly, despite initially going into remission, Oquendo’s cancer returned earlier this year, but little did she know that she was going to go on this journey with her sister.
In March of this year, her sister Joyce Melo was also diagnosed with colon cancer after a routine appendix removal surgery.
Oquendo said: “What are the chances that two sisters get diagnosed back-to-back with the same diagnosis that’s almost unheard of.”
The strange thing is that Melo was diagnosed at the exact same age Oquendo was, 37.
She told KRON 4: “Sometimes I still can’t believe this is our life, honestly. It kind of feels like you are living a nightmare.”
While Oquendo’s diagnosis was stage four immediately, Melo’s was suspected to be stage one until further tests found that it had spread to her lungs.
The second sister was then given the terrible news that her cancer was also stage four.
Now, she is preparing to go through 12 rounds of chemotherapy and surgery – but there’s a hitch in her plans. Her insurance refuses to cover her chemo.
Her sister, Oquendo, told KRON 4: “It makes me angry. How does insurance not cover chemotherapy. Like how is that not an option?”
For this reason, their family has set up a GoFundMe for Melo to help with her medical costs.
For now, both sisters are continuing with their treatments, with Melo explaining: “Recovery has been incredibly challenging and I’m still unsure where I’ve found the strength to endure all of this.
“But you never really know how strong you are until you’re faced with the greatest battle of your life.”
While doctors have not found a connecting cause for why both sisters were diagnosed with the same illness, the Mayo Clinic states that having a family history of colon cancer can increase the risk of developing it by between five and 15 percent.
The Mayo Clinic explains on its website: “If your relative with cancer is younger than age 50, your risk if even higher.”
The American Cancer Society has theorized that if two siblings have the same cancer, there may be a genetic mutation which was passed down from their parents.
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, contact the American Cancer Society on 1-800-227-2345 or via their_ live chat feature_, available 24/7 every day of the year.