This is my short personal story which I thought to share with my Brothers and Sisters in Christ.

As many may be aware, I am fighting my fifth Cancer with Lung Cancer being the latest. I currently go for weekly Blood test and Chemo treatment; every few months I also need to have a number of CT Scans with a contrast liquid.

Usually my wife Karen would bring me to Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH) as I need a wheelchair once I exit the bus, but on 8 June my daughter Michelle (age 17) had to bring me for the double CT Scans and bring me home via Taxi.

Approximately 15 minutes after I arrived home on 8 June from the hospital, I received a call from my Cancer Doctor telling me the scan showed a mass in my lung and I needed to go to the National Centre for Infectious Diseases (NCID) urgently for COVID-19 testing. This was when it hit me… what if I had the COVID-19 virus at my age (66) and with my underlying health issues? I would have a slim chance of surviving. I had many plans and things to do so all these thoughts were circling in my mind, but I had to show I was not afraid to my family members.

So once again Michelle and I got in a taxi to NCID (Opposite TTSH) and hobbled over to the reception (I now need to use a walking stick as I was very unstable). After the receptionist called my Cancer Doctors to confirm that an urgent test was needed, I was directed to the testing area down the hill, where I was escorted in a wheelchair to a private room. Michelle was told to wait outside.

First impressions were an eye-opener. All the hospital personnel wore protective gear, and there were about 30+ of them in striking yellow safety gear, school-like tables spread out over a large area, and I could see about 40+ people being tested (most of them looked like construction workers).  In the private room, I was told to wait for a nurse to arrive. I filled in a questionnaire and afterwards swab taking was done (a very unpleasant experience). A doctor would arrive later to tell me she would like to keep me overnight as the test results would take 7-12 hours. I rejected being warded as I did not feel any of the symptoms (cough, running nose, fever, etc.) so I was permitted by the Senior Doctor to go home and self-quarantine myself, and wait for the phone call for results the next day.

All this time my mind was racing with negative thoughts, but at one point I remembered what Fr Terence said during a retreat, when you are very sick people should pray for you that the Lord takes you away to the Promised Land, so I prayed if it was my turn I will accept God’s will. I did not get much sleep that night.

I received the call midday and was told I was “Negative” and the report will be on the Government website in 7-10 days. Seems it was an infection (not COVID-19) and after taking lots of antibiotics, my chest pains almost went away.

So God has a plan for me by allowing me to overcome this brush with COVID-19 [to continue to suffer in other ways 🙂 ] but I give thanks to the Lord that I made it through this scary episode.

Michael Roberts