Men and Women in Heels (Health.Education.Environment.Livelihood.Shelter. )

“I gained the strength and determination to continue my treatment from my family. My elder sister provided for my food, paid my rent and all my other expenses. She even got buried in debts just to continuously support my needs. My aunt looked after me and accompanied me to check-ups. During the Programmatic Management of Drug-resistant TB (PMDT) treatment, they would see me having a hard time enduring the side effects of the medicines. They often asked me if I can still continue it, if I wanted to quit the treatment. But I didn’t. How could you quit and turn your back from people who’ve sacrificed so much for you? Looking back, I realized that everything happened for a reason. The reason my treatment took 10 years is because I would meet my husband Stuart who was my nurse before. The reason I was not able to work right away after my treatment is because I would be in an institution where I would be truly accepted and belong. The reason I had to undergo this is because I would eventually come out, share my story and become a source of strength and hope for my fellow TB patients/survivors. Being an advocate is my way of giving back, of helping a TB patient sustain and complete the treatment. Should I deprive them of my story when I know that they would benefit from it? I’m happy with what I did, and now my husband and I are training other TB survivors to become advocates as well and to be the much-needed inspiration to others.”—MILDRED FERNANDO-PANCHO, XDR-TB survivor, international TB advocate, principal proponent of TB Malaya Project, and licensed accountant