Chemotherapy left her feet too swollen for shoes but this single mum kept running: 'It saved my life'

Cassandra Hie started running to cope with her divorce, then kept going through breast cancer and chemotherapy. Now 53, the single mum is a competitive runner and Hyrox athlete with more than 10 top-three finishes since her cancer diagnosis.

Single mum Cassandra Hie, 53, ran through breast cancer and chemotherapy, going on to complete many races. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

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Her feet were too swollen to fit into running shoes so she ran without them – bare feet pounding on hard pavement along the Kallang Park Connector.

In 2019, Cassandra Hie was undergoing chemotherapy for breast cancer, and the drugs caused the swelling. They also made her feel very sick.

“There’d be days when I couldn’t even open my eyes. I’d just lie in bed. But the moment I could get up, I’d run,” she said.

Hie had another unusual running ritual. She would draw on her eyebrows before each 6km to 10km run. The chemotherapy had not only taken her hair, but her lashes and brows too.

“Sometimes, I’d come back from my run with only one eyebrow. I looked like an alien,” she said.

So, Hie began to run with a brow pencil in her pocket, checking her brows and touching up in the middle of a long run. “I just wanted to feel normal,” she told CNA Women.

“If I didn’t run, I’d have nausea, I’d want to vomit. When I went for a run, all these symptoms disappeared,” she said.

WHEN HER RUNNING JOURNEY BEGAN

A single mum raising two kids without maintenance from her ex-husband or family support, Hie could not afford to be brought down by cancer.

The single mum raised her two kids without financial or family support. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

Hie with her kids today. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

“My family is back in Indonesia, so I’m the only one my two kids have here,” said the 53-year-old Indonesian-born Singapore citizen. “They need me, so there’s no way I can show weakness to them.”

In fact, her running journey began in 2015 during her year-long divorce. Then, her son and daughter were just nine and seven, and she was a marketing manager. Life as a single parent and working mum going through a divorce was “hectic and stressful”.

“At that point, I had quite a negative outlook. I was looking after every single aspect of family life, and I wasn’t looking after my health. I was losing myself,” she recalled.

Wanting to lose some weight, she chose running because it was convenient and cheap. She decided to jog 20 minutes, three times a week around her estate.

For someone who had never run before, “it often felt like the longest 20 minutes”.

A long-time friend invited her for a 10km run at MacRitchie Reservoir. Hie said no but decided to try 5km instead. It was horrible, but she kept trying, and each time, it got a little easier.

Shortly after, the same friend invited her for a 50km hospice charity run at MacRitchie Reservoir. Somehow, Hie said yes.

The run took 11 hours. “I almost died,” she laughed. But she finished, and “that was the beginning of everything”.

Running became a lifeline during Hie’s toughest trials. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

It was strangely affirming for someone whose life had been derailed to discover she could do what she set her mind to. And the endorphins from the run made all her troubles go away, she said.

Every morning, the single mum would go for a run before waking her children for school.

“At 4am, the roads were empty… there was no one, just a few taxi drivers. I could see small animals running past me. I felt free,” she said.

On weekends, she would do trail runs at MacRitchie Reservoir.

“It’s a kind of meditation. The pebbles you step on, the rustle of leaves, the smell of the earth, the rhythm of your own footsteps – all these things calm you down,” she said.

Running 100km a week, Hie survived a stressful year of divorce. She began enrolling for races for the fun of it and even came in third in a 10km race.

After a running injury in 2017, Hie trained in sports massage to learn proper post-run recovery techniques . The following year, she left marketing to become a clinical massage therapist at Ufit.

Hie is a clinical massage therapist. Several of her clients are breast cancer survivors, and some also struggle with menopause issues. (Photo: Ufit)

A LAST RACE BEFORE TREATMENT

One morning in April 2019, Hie came back from a run with a slight discomfort in her chest. She was diagnosed with Stage Two breast cancer.

“When they told me I needed surgery to remove my right breast, the first thing I said was, can the surgery wait?” she recalled.

Hie had several races planned, including a sponsored 250km race in South Africa. Her doctor strongly advised against delaying surgery, so she settled for one last race in May – the 55km Vietnam Jungle Marathon.

Halfway into the race, she feared she might not finish and texted her daughter. Unaware that Hie had cancer, her daughter replied: “That is not the Mama I know.”

That message gave Hie the strength to finish the race. She made every checkpoint just five minutes before the cutoff time.

“After that, I texted my girl. I did it. I finished it,” she said.

“After I had cancer, nothing else scared me. I survived cancer. I can survive anything,” Hie says. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

Hie undergoing chemotherapy. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

With that hard-fought victory behind her, she went for the 10-hour surgery in June – doctors removed her right breast and 23 lymph nodes, and reconstructed her breast with tissue from her abdomen. Hie told her children about her cancer around a week before her surgery.

On the third night after her surgery, an artery on her right breast burst.

“My breast was big and swollen. It was so painful. I remember the doctor telling the nurse, ‘Don’t let her sleep. Keep on talking to her.’ I could hear, but I couldn’t talk. I was fighting for air. I was fighting for my life,” she said.

Hie was wheeled in for emergency surgery and survived the ordeal.

RUNNING THROUGH CHEMOTHERAPY

Hie’s doctor told her that she would never be able to run long distances again. But in July, three weeks after discharge from hospital, she was back at MacRitchie Reservoir for a 10km loop, walking half the way.

Even when chemotherapy began in August, Hie did not stop. She ran through all five months of the treatment, and that gave her strength.

Hie ran through chemotherapy, even on days when she felt sick. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

One thing that really bothered Hie was when she lost her eyebrows and eyelashes. “I looked like an alien,” she said. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

Though Hie could no longer carry on as a massage therapist during this period, she switched to a part-time marketing role, working full office hours except on her chemotherapy days.

She glued on false lashes and drew on brows for work. But after she removed everything at the end of the day, Hie would hide in her bedroom.

“My kids would come into the room at night. We didn’t have to talk. They would just be there. No words needed,” she shared.

CANCER IS AN ULTRAMARATHON

Since her cancer journey, Hie has finished among the top three in more than 10 competitions. She was first in her age category in Hyrox Taipei in 2026. She came in third female overall in the 35km Tham Ngob Trail race in Thailand in 2026. And she was the first female overall in the 50km Jagoi Ultra 2025 race in Sarawak, Malaysia.

Hie was the third female overall in the 35km Tham Ngob Trail race in Thailand in 2026. “I’m grateful for every day that I’m able to get up. That means I get another day,” she said. (Photo: Cassandra Hie)

She is also back at Ufit as a clinical massage therapist and is passionate about helping others with their sports journey.

Cancer treatment has taken a toll on her body. Her menopause started at 47, and she still experiences stiffness and pain everywhere.

Working out helps. “The more I train, the stronger I get. I’m turning my pain into power,” she said.

“Running saved my life. It helped me to get through all those years of divorce and cancer,” she reflected. “The pain I felt, I transferred to my legs and let it go into the mountains.

“Cancer is like an ultra [marathon]. It was the longest ultra race I’ve ever had,” she added.

Relapse is never far from Hie’s mind. But she approaches her cancer journey and physical races in the same spirit.

“When I’m tired, I tell myself, just continue. Just walk. It will pass. There will be a second wind, and suddenly, you won’t feel tired anymore,” she said.

CNA Women is a section on CNA Lifestyle that seeks to inform, empower and inspire the modern woman. If you have women-related news, issues and ideas to share with us, email CNAWomen [at] mediacorp.com.sg .

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卡桑德拉·希伊最初是为了排解离婚的痛苦而开始跑步，后来又克服了乳腺癌和化疗的难关，坚持跑步。如今53岁的她，是一位竞技跑者和Hyrox运动员，自确诊癌症以来，已获得超过10次前三名的好成绩。

53岁的单身母亲卡桑德拉·希（Cassandra Hie）在与乳腺癌抗争并接受化疗期间，坚持完成了多项比赛。（照片：卡桑德拉·希）

这段音频由人工智能工具生成。

她的脚肿得太厉害，穿不下跑鞋，所以她只好光着脚跑步——赤脚踩在加冷公园连道的坚硬路面上。

2019年，卡桑德拉·希正在接受乳腺癌化疗，药物导致了她的肿胀，也让她感到非常恶心。

“有时候我甚至睁不开眼，只能躺在床上。但只要我能起床，我就会立刻跑起来，”她说。

Hie还有一个不同寻常的跑步习惯。每次跑完6公里到10公里后，她都会画眉毛。化疗不仅夺走了她的头发，也夺走了她的睫毛和眉毛。

“有时候，我跑步回来只剩下一条眉毛。我看起来像个外星人，”她说。

于是，Hie开始在跑步时随身携带眉笔，以便在长跑途中随时检查眉毛并进行修饰。“我只是想感觉自己像个正常人，”她告诉CNA Women。

“如果我不跑步，我会恶心，想吐。当我跑步的时候，所有这些症状都消失了，”她说。

她的跑步之旅始于何时

身为单身母亲，既没有前夫的赡养费，也没有家人的支持，Hie 独自抚养两个孩子，她承受不起癌症的打击。

这位单身母亲在没有任何经济或家人支持的情况下，独自抚养两个孩子长大。（照片：卡桑德拉·希）

今天，希伊和她的孩子们在一起。（照片：卡桑德拉·希伊）

“我的家人都在印尼，所以我是两个孩子在这里唯一的亲人，”这位53岁、出生于印尼的新加坡公民说道。“他们需要我，所以我不能在他们面前示弱。”

事实上，她的跑步生涯始于2015年，那一年她正经历着漫长的离婚。当时，她的儿子和女儿分别只有九岁和七岁，而她则是一名市场经理。作为一名单亲妈妈和职业女性，在离婚的双重压力下，她的生活“忙碌而充满压力”。

“那时候，我的想法非常消极。我把家庭生活的方方面面都照顾到了，却忽略了自己的健康。我感觉自己迷失了方向，”她回忆道。

为了减肥，她选择了跑步，因为跑步既方便又便宜。她决定每周三次，每次20分钟，在她居住的小区周围慢跑。

对于一个以前从未跑过步的人来说，“这20分钟常常感觉无比漫长”。

一位老朋友邀请她去麦里芝蓄水池跑10公里。Hie拒绝了，但决定先试试5公里。虽然感觉很糟糕，但她坚持不懈，而且每次都感觉轻松一些。

不久之后，这位朋友邀请她参加在麦里芝蓄水池举行的50公里临终关怀慈善长跑。不知为何，Hie答应了。

这次跑步花了11个小时。“我差点就死了，”她笑着说。但她坚持跑完了全程，“那也是一切的开始”。

在希伊最艰难的考验中，跑步成了她的精神支柱。（照片：卡桑德拉·希伊）

对于一个生活一度脱轨的人来说，发现自己能做到任何想做的事情，这让她感到莫名的振奋。她说，跑步带来的内啡肽让她所有的烦恼都烟消云散了。

每天早上，这位单身母亲都会先去跑步，然后再叫孩子们起床上学。

“凌晨四点，路上空无一人……一个人也没有，只有几辆出租车。我能看到小动物从我身边跑过。我感到很自由，”她说。

周末，她会在麦里芝水库进行越野跑。

“这是一种冥想。你踩到的鹅卵石，树叶的沙沙声，泥土的芬芳，你自己的脚步声——所有这些都能让你平静下来，”她说。

希伊每周跑步100公里，以此度过了离婚后压力巨大的一年。她开始报名参加比赛，纯粹是为了好玩，甚至在一场10公里比赛中获得了第三名。

2017年，Hie因跑步受伤后，接受了运动按摩培训，学习正确的跑步后恢复技巧。次年，她辞去了市场营销工作，成为Ufit的一名临床按摩治疗师。

Hie是一位临床按摩治疗师。她的几位客户是乳腺癌幸存者，还有一些客户正在经历更年期症状。（图片：Ufit）

治疗前的最后一场比赛

2019年4月的一个早晨，Hie跑步回来后感到胸口有些不适。她被诊断出患有二期乳腺癌。

“当他们告诉我需要做手术切除右侧乳房时，我说的第一句话就是，手术能不能等等？”她回忆道。

希原本计划参加几场比赛，其中包括一场在南非举行的250公里赞助赛。她的医生强烈建议不要推迟手术，所以她决定参加五月份的最后一场比赛——55公里越南丛林马拉松。

比赛进行到一半时，她担心自己可能无法完成比赛，于是给女儿发了短信。女儿并不知道希患有癌症，回复说：“这不是我认识的妈妈。”

那条信息给了希耶完成比赛的力量。她每次都准时在截止时间前五分钟到达检查点。

“之后，我给我女朋友发了短信。我做到了。我完成了，”她说。

“得过癌症之后，我就什么都不怕了。我战胜了癌症，我什么都能战胜。”希说。（照片：卡桑德拉·希）

希伊正在接受化疗。（照片：卡桑德拉·希伊）

经历了那场艰苦卓绝的胜利后，她在六月接受了长达十个小时的手术——医生切除了她的右侧乳房和23个淋巴结，并用腹部的组织重建了乳房。手术前一周左右，Hie告诉了孩子们她患癌的消息。

手术后的第三晚，她右乳房的一根动脉破裂了。

“我的乳房又大又肿，疼得厉害。我记得医生跟护士说，‘别让她睡觉，要一直跟她说话。’我能听见，但说不出话来。我呼吸困难，我感觉自己快要死了，”她说。

Hie被紧急送往医院接受手术，并挺过了难关。

接受化疗

希的医生告诉她，她再也无法长跑了。但7月，出院三周后，她就回到了麦里芝蓄水池，跑了一个10公里的环形路线，其中一半是步行完成的。

即使化疗从八月份开始，Hie也没有停下脚步。她坚持完成了整整五个月的治疗，这给了她力量。

即使在感到不适的日子里，希也坚持接受化疗。（照片：卡桑德拉·希）

最让希伊感到困扰的是她失去了眉毛和睫毛。“我看起来像个外星人，”她说。（照片：卡桑德拉·希伊）

虽然在此期间 Hie 无法继续担任按摩治疗师，但她转而从事兼职市场营销工作，除了化疗日外，她每天上班，工作时间与上班族相同。

为了工作，她会贴上假睫毛，画上眉毛。但一天结束后，卸妆后，Hie就会躲进自己的卧室。

“我的孩子们晚上会走进房间。我们不需要说话。他们就待在那里。不需要任何言语，”她说道。

癌症是一场超级马拉松

自抗癌以来，Hie在超过10项比赛中都取得了前三名的好成绩。2026年，她在台北Hyrox比赛中获得年龄组第一名；2026年，她在泰国35公里Tham Ngob越野赛中获得女子组总成绩第三名；2025年，她在马来西亚沙捞越50公里Jagoi超级马拉松比赛中获得女子组总成绩第一名。

2026年，Hie在泰国举行的35公里Tham Ngob越野赛中获得女子组总成绩第三名。“我感谢每一天能够醒来。这意味着我又拥有了新的一天，”她说。（照片：Cassandra Hie）

她也回到了 Ufit 担任临床按摩治疗师，并热衷于帮助其他人实现他们的运动梦想。

癌症治疗对她的身体造成了很大的损害。她47岁就进入了更年期，现在仍然感到全身僵硬疼痛。

锻炼很有帮助。“我训练得越多，就越强壮。我把痛苦转化为力量，”她说。

“跑步拯救了我的生命。它帮助我度过了离婚和癌症的那些年，”她回忆道。“我把感受到的痛苦转移到我的腿上，然后让它们奔向群山。”

“癌症就像一场超级马拉松。这是我经历过的最漫长的超级马拉松，”她补充道。

复发的阴影始终萦绕在希耶的心头。但她对待抗癌之路和参加体育比赛的态度却始终如一。

“当我感到疲倦时，我会告诉自己，坚持下去。继续走。这种感觉会过去的。你会重新振作起来，突然间，你就不会再感到疲倦了，”她说。

CNA Women是CNA Lifestyle旗下的一个版块，旨在为现代女性提供信息、赋能和启发。如果您有与女性相关的新闻、议题或想法想要与我们分享，请发送电子邮件至CNAWomen[at]mediacorp.com.sg。

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