Palestinian writer and novelist Amal Abu Assi is fighting a harsh battle with breast cancer, facing the imminent threat of death due to a severe shortage of essential medicines in the Gaza Strip. Field sources reported that the life of the displaced writer is in grave danger due to the absence of radiation therapy, a medical facility that thousands of patients in the besieged strip have been deprived of.
Abu Assi revealed in special statements the deterioration of her health condition, as the disease has progressed to the second stage with the appearance of new cancerous foci in the breast and armpit area. She explained that the absence of accurate diagnosis represents a major obstacle, especially after the loss of her tumor sample due to the displacement of the medical laboratory and the damage to laboratory contents.
The Palestinian writer is currently awaiting a response from any host country to receive her case, emphasizing that her suffering is not an individual case but a reflection of a bitter reality experienced by thousands of patients. She pointed out that a patient in Gaza is forced to fight the disease on multiple fronts, starting from searching for shelter and ending with trying to obtain permission to travel through closed crossings.
Abu Assi stressed that cancer does not recognize truces or political negotiations, but continues to spread within the bodies of the exhausted without stopping. She considered that depriving a patient of their right to treatment makes them pay the price of the disease twice, once from their body and once from their dignity and right to life guaranteed by international laws.
Regarding the medical reality, the writer mentioned that 'red type' chemotherapy has only been available in the Strip for two months and in very limited quantities. She also noted that surgical operations to remove tumors have become complicated and dangerous due to the lack of appropriate antibiotics and the contaminated health environment that increases the chances of infection.
The Palestinian novelist touched upon logistical challenges, as the Strip suffers from a severe shortage of specialized medical staff compared to the huge number of cancer patients. The destruction of health facilities and major hospitals has further complicated the scene, making it a distant dream for many to get a seat in a hospital waiting room.
Abu Assi affirmed in her speech that cancer patients in Gaza are not just numbers in daily statistics, but human beings with families and dreams they strive to achieve. She said that these patients do not ask for anyone's pity, but demand their legitimate rights to receive the necessary medical care to save their lives from certain death.
Regarding nutritional needs, the writer explained that patients lack the most basic nutritional components that help their bodies resist the disease and boost immunity. Under the siege, healthy, balanced food, which is an essential part of the treatment protocol to combat the deadly side effects of chemotherapy, is absent.
The writer sent a moving message to the international community, noting that she has a voice and readers who convey her message, but there are thousands of silent people facing death in secret. She appealed to humanitarian organizations and the Royal Family in Jordan to intervene urgently to save more than 15,000 patients awaiting medical referrals abroad.
For its part, the Ministry of Health in Gaza warned that the health situation has reached a stage of 'catastrophic deterioration,' where the crisis directly threatens the lives of more than 4,000 cancer patients. The ministry confirmed in a statement that the scarcity of specialized medicines puts the health system in complete inability to provide life-saving services.
The disease runs through the body and does not wait for truces or negotiations, and no one deserves to pay the price of their illness twice.
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Writer Amal Abu Assi Faces 'Battle for Survival' Against Cancer and Siege in Gaza