Gospel singer Sarah Téibo shares her journey with thyroid cancer and how it has inspired her new single, ‘Human Like Me’

The world of award-winning UK gospel singer Sarah Téibo was turned upside down after she was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. This wife and mother of two feared she would never be able to sing again following her treatment. However, God had other plans.

Sarah spoke with Keep The Faith about overcoming thyroid cancer; how her faith in God helped her navigate the journey with a serious illness; and her plans to go on a church tour with her recently released single, ‘Human Like Me’.

There was a lot of surprise and shock when you posted on Instagram that you had overcome thyroid cancer. What made you decide to be so public about your experience of cancer?
SARAH TÉIBO (ST): I am naturally a very quiet person – most people don’t believe I am actually an introvert. So, when I received the diagnosis, my first instinct was to just process it within my own space. I did this for several months before finally making a public statement about what I had been going through. The main reason I decided to share my story was so it could hopefully encourage anyone who might be going through a similar experience.

How did people respond after reading your post?
ST: Most people were quite sympathetic after hearing what I had been through. I received numerous calls, messages, and in some cases, personal visits from people. It was a pleasant surprise and, on one occasion, I was moved to tears by one particular visit to my home.

What symptoms led to the cancer diagnosis?
ST: The main symptom was a swelling on my neck. Though I wasn’t in pain, initial scans by my GP caused some alarm, which prompted further tests with specialists. Following this, I was given the shocking news that there was a tumour on my thyroid which was cancerous and needed to be removed.

Whenever the word ‘cancer’ is mentioned, people usually think death sentence. How did you respond when you were told you had cancer?
ST: It did feel like a punch to the throat when I was given the diagnosis. I am sure my heart sank to the floor of that hospital consultation room. It wouldn’t be until I got home that I actually broke down in tears.

How did your faith strengthen and comfort you and your family as you dealt with the aftermath of the cancer treatment?
ST: Our faith played a huge part in processing this phase of our lives as a family. Though I struggled with the diagnosis and initially even rejected it – because it is not my portion – I remember going to God and just asking Him: “Why?!” I was broken, in despair, and very open with my heavenly Father. It was in this place of vulnerability that God comforted and told me that if I never had a sickness, I would never know Him to be my Healer. Sometimes, as Christians, we want to go through life without any challenges, but it is through those challenges that we put our faith to the test and prove that God is truly who He says He is.

As you were going through the treatment, what were you most fearful of?
ST: My biggest fear was the possibility of losing my voice. This is something that was pointed out to me before I even went into surgery. It turned out that, after surgery, I did have mild vocal cord paresis, which meant part of my vocal cord was mildly paralysed, resulting in the need for me to have vocal rehab to regain the strength in my vocal cords and essentially learn to sing again.

You’ve been given the all clear. How has it affected your approach to life, your family and your faith?
ST: It was a great relief to get the all clear after surgery! I genuinely feel privileged that my story did not end a different way. I now have a new outlook to life in general and my new motto is ‘Seize every moment’. These days that means I would rather enjoy an experience (e.g. at a concert) than take videos or photos. I just immerse myself into every chance I get at life.

It’s evident that you want to get back to your gospel ministry, as you’ve released an EP. What’s the inspiration behind your song ‘Human Like Me’?
ST: This song is inspired by my very personal story of triumph after a life-altering episode with cancer. Losing what I felt was intrinsic to my identity – my voice – made me feel like a shattered vase – purposeless. But, through my restorative journey to being able to sing again, I am reminded that God specialises in transforming our broken pieces into masterpieces.

You are also planning to go on tour to share your story. What’s the reasoning behind that?
ST: My hope is that by sharing my testimony of navigating fear, faith, vulnerability and healing, and using songs from the project, I will be able to encourage and inspire people who may be going through a challenging season in their lives. The entire EP starts off with four words: “It’s gonna be OK.” More people need to hear this.

What should we expect from you musically in the forthcoming year?
ST: Following the release of this EP, I plan to take on more opportunities to perform the songs from the project and share my testimony to encourage others. I also plan to do more writing for my next project, as well as writing for other artists.

Having gone through cancer and come out the other side, what are the greatest life lessons you’ve learnt?
ST: One of the greatest lessons I learned from this experience is the importance of having a strong support system and true friends. I am not sure how I would have been able to process and cope with everything I went through, if I didn’t have my family there to support me. My church community and network of close friends were also a pillar of strength and encouragement through some of my darkest days.

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