Police Constable for the Crime Prevention Unit in Robertson, Cleo, beat her stage 2 breast cancer; her friend has started raising funds to cover her final bills.
Cape Town, South Africa (24 August 2022) – Police Constable Cleopatra “Cleo” Leoschut (37) recently celebrated going into remission after a battle against stage 2 breast cancer. With the bulk of her worries now behind her, this brave single mom just needs to focus on her final bills before she can move forward from this chapter of her life.
Cleo works as a police constable in the crime prevention unit from Robertson, Western Cape. She is a kind and generous woman who would give the shirt off her back to help someone in need. Her friend Michelle Brown wanted to help ease her worry over this battle and is raising the final amount needed to cover her last medical bill.
“Cleo always puts others first, whether it’s in her job in the police force, where she has served for almost 12 years, or in her role as a doting mom, to her 6-year-old son, Liam, she has always lived to serve and protect others. I have always admired Cleo’s resilience towards anything that life throws at her.” – says Michelle
Cleo discovered three lumps in her breast in October 2020. She was later diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer. She was shocked by the diagnosis but refused to give in. The emotional aspect was the toughest, but Cleo says she pulled herself together and decided to fight with all her might.
“I never thought that I would get cancer. You always hear about this stuff but never expect it to happen to you. It took a while for me to accept. I used to cry a lot but not in front of my son and I kept asking God why did this happen to me” – says Cleo
“One day I felt really sad when I noticed that my hair is starting to fall out, then out of the blue my son came to me, and gave me a hug and said ‘Eks baie lief vir mammie’. He hugged me so tightly as if he’s never going to let go of me and that’s when I decided that I need to get my mind right and fight back” – says Cleo
Cleo underwent an operation to remove the cancer in July 2021. Now, 13 months later, she is officially in remission.
On 12 August 2022, Cleo underwent a skin graft procedure to repair her damaged tissue after the months of radiation therapy she endured.
Knowing that her friend would be unable to cover the shortfall of the procedure, approximately R11 000, Michelle launched a crowdfunding campaign on BackaBuddy, to allow Cleo to recover without additional financial stress.
“With the current economic climate, Cleo and her son live with her parents, and this is money she just doesn’t have. I want nothing more than for my friend to focus on her health and put this traumatic experience behind her.” – says Michelle
“Cleo is truly a role model of what strong will, hard work, a positive mindset and constant faith can do. I want to implore each and everyone reading this to please assist with a donation of any amount towards her medical bills.” – says Michelle
If you would like to support Cleo’s final bills, you can do so via BackaBuddy here.