Young Nightingale Grove woman battles deadly blood cancer

Major, a 39-year-old plant worker at Jamaica Broilers Group’s Best Dressed Chicken factory in Spring Village, has the daunting task of gathering resources and funds to assist her eldest child, s she and other family members face an uphill battle against Leukemia, a deadly cancer of the blood that Butler was recently diagnosed with.

The mother of four is holding it together, she said, standing as a tower of strength for her daughter. But in the circumstance before her that is she knows; hence folding under pressure is just not in her DNA.

“How do I cope? Bwoy it nuh normal fi me,” she expressed of the challenging circumstances before her and the family.

“But I have to be strong for her,” she emphasized during an interview with Old Harbour News.

Major, affectionately called ‘Tina’ by her close family and friends, says her daughter fell ill just this past January and since then, the world as they know it has been turned upside down. And needless to say the experts at the University Hospital of the West Indies (UHWI) in her view have been less than empathetic in explaining the path ahead and what are the possible alternate options available.

“When you go to the hospital, they try to explain to you what chemotherapy is and how if it nuh work, they will give her a stronger dose and if that nuh work, they will up it again and if that nuh work, then she has to get a bone marrow transplant,” she said.

“The bone marrow transplant is ultimately her best bet and can actually provide the means of a recovery for her but they are pushing me to look about the visa thing as the transplant would have to be done overseas but we need an overseas hospital to accept her first.”

In addition to the hospital and cost of this surgical procedure, there are accommodations and visa/travel requirements that have to be sorted out a demand that overwhelms her mentally at times because she’s unsure of where to start with achieving all that needs to be completed promptly.

Meanwhile, the cancer has taken over more than 60 percent of Butler’s body, local treatment has to be done and chemotherapy is what the doctors advised. However, this is not the option that Butler wants.

“They are stressing me,” she said in an understandably frustrating tone, “as they are pushing for the chemo treatments but Latoya doesn’t want it because they say they want to put the medication into her shoulder as her veins are not working; and that frightens her.  That is $40,000 right there so and I have to go find it. Plus I personally think the herbal treatment is better than the chemo.”

As a production worker at Best Dressed Chicken for over ten years, Major doesn’t earn a big salary to finance the demands of saving her daughter’s life. She says the cost of funding any form of treatment is very expensive and has impacted her family’s finances considerably. While some family members have stepped up when they can, Latoya’s father is aware of her dire situation but has shown no interest to help out.

Major said: “Har father a nuh father if you know what I mean. Is my other kids’ father that is a father to her. He is the one who has always been there for her.”

Leukemia is a cancer of the white blood cells, which begins in the bone marrow. Leukemias are grouped in two ways: the type of white blood cell affected - lymphoid or myeloid; and how quickly the disease develops and gets worse. The disease is said to be caused by genetic changes in blood cells produced in bone marrow cells, but all known leukemia-causing genetic mutations are acquired during life, not inherited. However, certain inheritable genetic syndromes can increase the risk of acute leukemia. To date, doctors are unable to provide answers as to what caused a seemingly healthy 21-year-old woman in Butler to develop leukemia. They have however advised Major and other family members to get tested or screened.

But Major is scared, saying: “Right now them waa me to get tested to see if anyone else in the family has it but honestly, me nuh waa know. I will abide by my faith in God.”
It is this faith that has been keeping her.

Latoya’s younger siblings who are 15, 11 and seven years of age, understand the situation and do their best to keep her mind occupied and her spirits high. When asked about any assistance her employers may have contributed, Major said that they have not been formally communicated to.

“People in my department know and have contributed but no, management doesn’t know yet,” she said.

Faced with the enormity of what lies ahead for her firstborn, Major is understandably uneasy and makes no bones expressing this, though she tries to put on a brave face for her family and others.

“I fear death, me nah lie to you. To see my child in this predicament and I don’t even get a grand pickney yet, it rough. People love to say the worst thing that can happen a teenage pregnancy but I tell them that the worst thing that can happen is sickness. Sometimes the way the stress tek me, me just go lay down and sleep,” she added.

Incredibly Latoya herself has no such fear. The gutsy young woman has tough skin and a strong mental capacity to take blows, bad news and blood transfusions, absorb them all and filter out any negative as she refuses to allow anything to depress her or weaken her resolve to fight. A graduate of Innswood High School, Major recalls that as a child Latoya was every parent’s dream as she was very quiet, respectful and introspective.

Her mom says: “She is always humble. Nothing nuh trouble har. All now she tells herself that she nuh sick.” However, the fact remains that she is ill. “She a feel pain but with the medication, she get ease from it. They are also trying to stop her period because they don’t want her to bleed excessively,” the mom explained.

For Latoya, life is a journey and she is determined that her personal journey will not be cut short. Her resilience and positive spirit are remarkable considering the seriousness of her condition but Butler feels that the power of mind over matter helps in not only making her feel good but keeps her going until the right treatment is sourced. She told Old Harbour News that her normal carefree life hit a speed bump in early January of this year.

“I felt tired and dizzy and had some red spots on my feet so I decided to go to the doctor and he sent me to the hospital,” she recalled. Tests at the hospital unearth her diagnosis, but Latoya refuses to accept what was told to her as an abbreviated life.

“I told my mother and she shared the news with my family. To be honest when them tell me, me nuh believe,” she said in an optimistic tone. “Right now there are no pressing symptoms. Leukemia doesn’t have stages or levels like other types of cancers; they just know that it is progressing.”

The recommendation of chemotherapy and bone marrow transplant are costs that she cannot afford, yet Butler remains more than hopeful, as she still finds time to share jokes, a tactic she oftentimes turns toward to keep alive hopes among the family when they are feeling the full magnitude of her situation.

The most pressing issue is that of her treatment, the bulk of which has to be done overseas. Unfortunately, local doctors have told her that it is not their responsibility to source the treatment, meaning she has to do it herself. A rough estimate of what is needed to cover all the treatment costs is a staggering J$13 million and so far she and her family have not gotten anywhere with sourcing overseas commitment.

When asked about her community of Nightingale Grove and friends who know of her situation, she shared that they have indeed rallied around her, carrying things she likes when visiting as well as their prayers and most importantly monetary contributions.

“The church people come and pray with me and some people bring a little something. Recently my family held a cake sale and that was well supported so I can say that my community is very supportive of me,” Butler said.

Cake sale aside, her friend Tameka Martin started a GoFundMe account to drum up some funds to alleviate the mounting medical bills and expensive medications. To date, it has raised US $3,000 which is a step in the right direction though nowhere near what is needed.

Butler who shared that she still enjoys her regular Sunday evening dinner of rice and peas and chicken is determined to do the things she did previously such as watch and share TikTok videos and relax. Though she is no longer able to do her packing job at the same Best Dressed Chicken plant where her mom works as well, she remains optimistic about her future.

“I know God is in control so me a try live my life still enuh,” she said.