27.02.2025 13:10
The singer Edis's mother, Sevil Görgülü, who overcame stage 4 metastatic colon cancer, shared her battle with cancer in her book titled "No Giving Up." Görgülü stated, "My biggest source of motivation was my son."
The mother of singer Edis, Sevil Görgülü, who overcame stage 4 metastatic colon cancer, has published a book titled 'No Giving Up' that focuses on her battle with cancer. Görgülü stated that the proceeds from the book will be donated to the Bone Marrow Transplantation and Oncology Center Establishment and Development Foundation (KİTVAK).
Sevil Görgülü, who works as a general manager at a hotel in İzmir, was diagnosed with stage 4 metastatic colon cancer in 2007. After years of fighting cancer and regaining her health in 2023, Görgülü began writing about her battle with cancer on her own blog during the final stages of her illness. She decided to compile these writings into a book, sharing her struggle in 'No Giving Up'. Görgülü will donate the proceeds from the book to KİTVAK. Describing her experience, Görgülü said, "I went to the doctor with complaints of back pain and had an MRI. A mass was seen on my ovary in the MRI. Then many tests were conducted. When looking at the CA levels, it was understood that the situation was bad. I was facing stage 4 cancer. It was colon metastatic CA. There were also 7 tumors in the liver. It was attached to the gallbladder. Additionally, there was a tumor about 6 centimeters in size on my ovary. That was ovarian cancer. I needed surgery. However, the tumors were too large for surgery. I underwent 6 cycles of chemotherapy. The tumors shrank by half," she expressed.
'I WAS LIKE A STAPLED NOTEBOOK' Görgülü, who stated that she underwent a surgery lasting about 10 hours after chemotherapy, said, "It was a knife-edge surgery. However, with a successful operation, the colon, liver, gallbladder, and ovary were cleaned. When I came out of surgery, I was like a stapled notebook because I was cut from end to end. Tumors of that size usually shrink after 9-12 cycles. I believed so much that I would succeed that I ignored the disease. After six cycles, I reached a point where surgery could be performed. My health is currently good. I continue with three-month check-ups. Lastly, I received chemotherapy in June 2023. In 4 months, it will be 2 years, and I am in very good condition," she said.
'I WANTED TO BE A LIGHT FOR OTHERS' Sharing her journey of writing the book, Görgülü continued her words:
"I experienced relapses four times. I had relapses every two years, and each time I underwent chemotherapy. I had around 12-14 surgeries. In total, I received 58 cycles of chemotherapy. Besides that, I had taken chemotherapy in pill form for 6 months. During that process, I had many companions. I lost many of them along the way. Seeing the people who were lost is very sad. As I succeeded, I felt the need to write. I wanted to write about what I did and how I fought so that it could be an example and a light for others. If I can help even one person, it is very important to me. I saw that what I did worked, that the path I followed was good, and that it helped me overcome the disease."
'THE PROCEEDS OF THE BOOK WILL GO TO KİTVAK' Görgülü expressed that the proceeds from the book will be donated to KİTVAK, saying, "Towards the end of the illness, I initially had a cancer blog on social media. I had started sharing there. I reached a lot of people. I began to receive very nice feedback. The idea of the book came from those people. I thought that if it were a book, it would be more permanent. It would be beneficial whether read 5 years later or 10 years later. So, I wrote the book and received very positive reactions. I wanted the book to be a light for someone and for the proceeds to benefit those on this path," she explained.
'MY BIGGEST SOURCE OF MOTIVATION WAS MY SON' Emphasizing that her biggest source of motivation during her cancer treatment was her son Edis, Görgülü stated, "After Edis sent the book to the publisher, he read the edited version when it came back and liked it very much. He was very happy that I did something so meaningful. He said, 'I am proud of you, mom.' He was always by my side during my illness. My biggest source of motivation was my son. Not only the patient but also the family experiences this. He never brought up my illness. While storms were raging inside, he did his job perfectly. I am proud of him too. Cancer patients should never give up. Chemotherapy may seem heavy during treatment, but they should not be afraid. They should know that those side effects will pass. They should ignore the disease. They should treat cancer like a flu. That’s what I did. They should not be afraid of cancer and should overcome it. They should continue their normal lives. I never stopped working. Don't disconnect from life, be sure you will succeed, and trust yourself. Defeat cancer by saying, 'I am stronger than you,'" she said.
Görgülü also added that routine check-ups should be carried out regularly.