Vika Gerasimova

Cancer the fool

This is Kate. She is 29. Kate teaches dance. She has a family; a husband Zhenya and a child Maks. Maks is 1 year and 6 months. One year ago Kate was diagnosed with breast cancer. When she was taking a shower, she felt that there was a small lump in her breast. She went to the hospital, where she was told that it could be the result of finishing breastfeeding. She was prescribed treatment, but this particular treatment is absolutely not allowed for people who have cancer. But fortunately she found a good doctor who prescribed her the correct treatment. So kate was eventually given several trajectories of chemotherapy. A month ago she was operated on. In Belarus as well as globally, breast cancer occupies 10% of all cases of cancer. Breast cancer occupies the first position among all the other kinds of cancer. The third and the fourth stages of cancer are on the first position in the death statistics. Most people who have cancer do not have access to any psychological support in the hospital, which is a serious problem. I am interested in Kate’s story because I am a young woman too, and I am afraid of cancer. I was shocked to find out how many young people are ill. I would like young women to pay more attention to their health, and have medical check-ups at least once a year. Even if one girl decides to go to the doctor after seeing this story, it would be a great victory for me.

Vika Gerasimova

My name is Vika Gerasimova, I’m 26 years old. I’m from Belarus. I live in Minsk. I graduated from the faculty of journalism in BSU. I worked for a Belarusian TV company for 5 years. I worked as an editor and administrator. At that time I was taking photos for a social project “The Names." This is a project I am currently still working on. Im my life I like reading and traveling, staying with my nearest and dearest. As a photographer I am focused on elderly people (their lives and living conditions), love, and people with rare genetic diseases or difficult diseases. I have never studied photography. The photos I take are straight from the heart, besides showing my point of view. In 2016 i was happy to meet Andrei Polikanov, Tatsiana Plotnikova and Yura Kozyrev. These people taught me to understand the heroes of my photostories better. So they showed me my mistakes in my photography. I am very grateful to them. I like the moment when I am taking a picture, it is impossible to explain in my own words. All the people who come into my life because of photography are kind and have beautiful souls.