AN OADBY cancer survivor, who compared herself to a Marvel superhero in order to keep her young sons upbeat throughout the ordeal, is featured on special Mother’s Day cards, which are currently being sold in Tesco.
Anita Patel, 44, is among 16 inspiring women, whose stories and photographs have been included on the cards, which will be sold in Tesco stores until Sunday (March 27).
The cards aim to connect with and support people affected by the disease, while also raising vital funds for Cancer Research UK.
Anita, a teacher and mum-of-two, was diagnosed with breast cancer back in 2019, something which was made even more difficult due to the fact that she lost her mum to the same disease several years earlier.
However, she decided to stay positive throughout her battle, and was determined that the same thing wasn’t going to happen to her.
She even went the extra mile to keep her two sons upbeat, by pretending to be Captain Marvel fighting the evil villain Thanos.
The story inspired her young Captain Marvel fans to believe that their mum was going to survive.
“It was something they could understand far better than the idea of me fighting an invisible enemy like cancer,” Anita explained.
“It really made them believe that I wasn’t going to die.”
“Cancer can make you feel that you’re at a crossroads in your life,” she added.
“Suddenly everything stops and you reassess all of the things that are important or less important to you. The upheaval can make you lose a little bit of yourself, and to find yourself again, you often try to make some changes for the better.”
Last October, Anita channeled her ‘inner superhero’ by running a ‘Race For Life’, raising hundreds for Cancer Research UK, as well as plenty of awareness in the process.
Anita hopes that by sharing her story, she will encourage others within the Asian community to break the stigma surrounding cancer and help people to be diagnosed earlier.
“I think my message to the Asian community would be to know your body, be open, talk about things with family members, get the help that you need from medical professionals and don’t be scared,” she said.
“There’s so much that can be done now with regards to Cancer. It is a bit of a taboo on occasions I think, and it’s important that that’s not the case, because I think knowledge leads to more understanding.
“If we share as much as possible, we can all have the best possible outcome going forwards with regards to cancer and just getting back on track.”
The cards, featuring Anita’s story have been designed by UK Greetings and are on sale in Tesco stores as part of the supermarket giant’s ongoing support of Race for Life.
Tesco will donate £20,000 from the sale of the cards to Cancer Research UK.
Staff and customers at the supermarket giant have raised over £60m for Cancer Research UK since 2002.
The Mother’s Day cards, which are priced from £1, are on sale in Tesco stores and at tesco.com
