A friend arranged for her to meet three cancer survivors, who shared their cancer journey with her. One recalled how she got fired from her job because of her illness and advised Phang to prepare for it.
Phang, who had been working as a graphic designer at her company for two and a half years, confessed that she did not think it would happen to her. She was proven wrong.
“At first, when my boss first knew of my cancer diagnosis, he told me not to worry because the company insurance could help pay for the treatment. But one day, he suddenly called a meeting with five of my colleagues, deliberately excluding me,” she said.
“At the end of the day, he told me that they had taken a vote, and three of the five colleagues voted to let me go. I was asked to leave with immediate notice and compensated three months’ salary,” she added.
“I was shocked because it was so cruel. I was also worried about whether I could now afford my medical bills.”
Financial concerns were not the only thing holding Phang back from treatment. As a young woman, she was worried that treatment would dash her hopes of starting a family.
“I was single and hoped to get married and have children. I didn’t want to lose my breast,” she said. “I also wanted to preserve my fertility. Even though my gynaecologist said I could preserve my eggs, I felt (cryopreservation) was costly and unnatural,” she said.