‘My work is my salvation, it helps me forget that I have cancer’
WFP staffer Bhawana Thapaliya has defied illness to help others in Nepal and to strike a blow for gender equality
Bhawana Thapaliya was working with refugees in Nepal when she began to feel ill and found a lump on her breast. Here she describes her refusal to be bowed by cancer, and how her work and the support of her family and colleagues have only increased her determination to live life as fully as possible. During this time Bhawana’s achievements include becoming Nepal’s first female forklift operator — which she hopes will inspire other female humanitarian workers.
“Being a humanitarian worker is not an easy job. You have to work in the face of man-made conflicts and natural disasters, which can be demanding and dangerous. But the truth is, I find this kind of work challenging. Also, when the work you do helps those in need, you get a real sense of satisfaction.
I began my career as a humanitarian worker with WFP’s office in Damak, Nepal, in 2008, where I worked as a Programme Assistant in refugee camps. At that time, WFP was providing food assistance to 100,000 refugees from Bhutan who were solely dependent on aid. It was hard to work in the camps, but I learnt a lot and enjoyed every part of it.
Then, in 2013 at the age of 30, I slowly started to fall sick and felt a lump growing on my breast. I had to travel to Kathmandu for an immediate check-up which led to my breast cancer diagnosis. I underwent six cycles of chemotherapy followed by radiotherapy.
My parents were apprehensive about me being open about my disease — they worried that I would stay single, but they never stopped me from working. Life is not the same after you get a diagnosis like cancer. Not only does all the chemo and radiotherapy make your body fragile, but also it shatters you mentally, socially and economically.
I used to go for chemo on Fridays and then during the weekends, take rest and then come back to work on Mondays. I continued going to work as it kept me occupied and busy. My work was my salvation, it helped me forget that I have cancer, even if only for a few hours a day.
After the treatment, I felt better and believed I could get rid of the disease. My partner, who knew about my health condition, proposed to me that we live our lives together. So, in December 2014, we got married.
When the two earthquakes struck Nepal in 2015, WFP provided food assistance to 2 million people. I was working as a Nutrition Officer on a one-year temporary deployment, supporting nutrition initiatives in 14 earthquake-affected districts. I travelled across the districts and worked long hours to help ensure humanitarian relief reached the victims on time, and that people understood the nutritional benefits of the food.
“I wanted to break the stereotype surrounding logistics being a male-oriented job.”
A few months later, I enrolled myself in forklift-operator training that Emergency Preparedness and Response, my current unit, organized. I have always been passionate about learning new things and WFP provided me with a platform.
I became Nepal’s first female licensed forklift operator. I wanted to break the stereotype surrounding logistics being a male-oriented job and inspire other women humanitarian workers to do the same. I had the sheer determination to be an achiever in spite of my illness.
Unfortunately, my cancer has returned twice — once in 2015 and then in 2017. In 2015, I went through the same treatment procedure which made me feel weak physically but not mentally or emotionally. I was fortunate that my supervisor allowed me to work from home on days that I felt extremely fragile.
Whenever I go to the hospital for treatment, the doctors and nurses ask me, “Who is the patient”? I tell them, “It’s me”. Then they look me up and down and say, “You really don’t look like a patient!” It gives me encouragement. But little did anyone know what was happening to me and the agony I was experiencing.
Today, when I look at myself in the mirror, I imagine all the pains that I went through for a couple of years, and then an inner sound comes from my soul which says that I am a battle-winner and I have been conquering my suffering so far, and will continue to win this time as well. This gives me immense encouragement.
In addition to this, my family, friends and colleagues have been providing me with overwhelming support. Cancer does not kill you, it is your mindset that kills. Feed your faith, and your fears will starve to death. We must accept pain and burn it as fuel for our journey.
The people that WFP assists are the extremely poor living in the rural mountains of Nepal. Serving them gave me the sheer determination to work every day and also travel to the field, as I know there are people worse off than me, living in conditions poorer than mine. This leaves me feeling grateful and loving my life whatever it was, is or will be.
Six months after writing this account, Bhawana passed away on 8 February 2018. She is survived by her husband of three years and WFP colleague Ram Chandra Sharma, her mother, father and one sister and one brother.
