SINGAPORE \u2013 A year ago, Shermin Shu had everything to look forward to.<\/p>\n
At 30, she was engaged to comedian Jacky Ng in June 2025 and won her first muay thai fight locally as an amateur in August.<\/p>\n
She brushed aside Ng\u2019s concerns when he noticed a lump in her right breast that month. Probably hormones or a blood clot from her almost-daily training, she thought.<\/p>\n
After all, the marketing executive was making her professional debut in Phuket in November, where she would be the first woman from her gym, Tiger Muay Thai (Singapore), to take part.<\/p>\n
She lost that fight to a more experienced competitor from the Netherlands, but continued intense training in anticipation of another fight in Singapore.<\/p>\n
It was only when she closely examined her body in the mirror in December 2025 that she saw a hard cyst near her nipple. She realised she had lost some weight and the density of her breast \u201cjust wasn\u2019t right\u201d.<\/p>\n
A breast and endocrine surgeon at Ng Teng Fong General Hospital confirmed her worst fears \u2013 she had Stage 2B breast cancer. There is no history of the disease in her family.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was young and active. As women, we\u2019re familiar with breast cancer, but we are taught that it happens at a later stage of life,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Shu broke down while calling her fiance, who was performing in Australia at the time.<\/p>\n
\u201cI apologised to Jacky because we just got engaged. There were many hopes and dreams for what we wanted to achieve and the kids we wanted to have. He was very comforting and told me we will go through this challenge together,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Since January, when her diagnosis was confirmed, she has gone through a whirlwind of cancer-related treatments, starting in March with a nipple-sparing mastectomy with breast reconstruction using a flap of tissue removed from the lower abdomen.<\/p>\n
She underwent in-vitro fertilisation procedures to retrieve and freeze eight eggs in May and June \u2013 even giving herself IVF injections in the toilet during breaks in the midst of a warehouse sale held by her employer, a wine importer \u2013 followed by 16 sessions of weekly chemotherapy from mid-June. Radiation therapy is scheduled for later in 2026.<\/p>\n Breast cancer patient Shermin Shu and her fiance Jacky Ng in March around the time she had cancer surgery.<\/p>\n PHOTO: COURTESY OF SHERMIN SHU<\/p>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n Her bosses were supportive and allowed her to work mostly remotely, but she recently quit to run her own freelance projects.<\/p>\n As a creative, she says she was always hustling for the next goal.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing 31 this year, the biggest change I\u2019ve made is to put myself first and listen to my body,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n \u201cI had always pushed my health and happiness aside in order to bring happiness to other people in the different ways I deliver creativity. Making this decision has made me a lot happier. I feel lighter.\u201d<\/p>\n Muay thai has been a grounding force for her, even though her routine is a fraction of what she was doing 12 months ago.<\/p>\n Her medical team encouraged her to keep fit, which also helps in unexpected ways, such as having veins visible enough for chemotherapy needles, she says.<\/p>\n Shu first picked up the sport about a decade ago to lose weight. In the process, she learnt to love the discipline and resilience muay thai taught her, as well as the community.<\/p>\n<\/picture><\/div>