Three years of adrenaline-fuelled shifts in the emergency department had solidified Zazi Gohar’s passion for nursing. She thrived in the fast-paced environment and felt certain her life was heading in the right direction.
The bubbly 27-year-old tells, “Even during the intensity of the pandemic, when I was nursing in the resuscitation department, I remember thinking, ‘I’ve got this. I’m killing it and as soon as COVID is over, I’m off travelling.’”
After helping so many others in their time of need, Zazi didn’t expect to find herself battling her own devastating health condition. In August 2020, doctors diagnosed her with aggressive multiple sclerosis (MS), an autoimmune disease where the body’s immune system attacks the myelin sheath around the nerves in the brain and spine, causing an array of symptoms.
“I’d had numbness, pain, blurry vision and fatigue for quite a while,” tells Zazi. “Then one day at work, my balance felt off and I had an odd numb feeling from the waist down. I remember leaving a room and turning to see one of my Birkenstock shoes on the other side on the floor. It had slipped off my foot and I hadn’t even realised. I mentioned how I was feeling to one of my consultants and quickly found myself ending the day as a patient.”
Neurologists were called and Zazi was sent for an MRI, which revealed several lesions on her brain and spinal cord, confirming her diagnosis.
“It’s really daunting to be told you have a progressive disease with no cure,” gym bunny Zazi admits. “My initial reaction was complete denial and to say, ‘I’m going to be fine. I’ll keep nursing, working out and travelling.’ But at the two-year mark, the reality of my diagnosis hit me like a tonne of bricks.”
By this time, MS was raging through Zazi’s body. The four-weekly infusions she was having to try to keep her symptoms in check were draining her. She had to change jobs and her mental health suffered.
“I was trying so hard to maintain my stamina and strength, but it felt like MS was winning. My body was failing me,” she tells.
Just before an appointment with her neurologist, a friend of Zazi’s mum Kate asked whether she had considered the possibility of a stem cell transplant to try and kick the disease into remission.
This aggressive, potentially risky and expensive treatment is not available in New Zealand. So, with the support of her open-minded neurologist, Zazi explored the options overseas. Following the recommendation of a family friend in India, she decided to go to Apollo Hospital in New Delhi for the treatment with Dr Gaurav Kharya.
“My mum and brother Karim, who works in para-medicine, were both extremely anxious about me doing the treatment. But after we had a virtual call together with Dr Kharya, our nerves were calmed.”
During the next six months, over $100,000 was raised on a Givealittle page set up for Zazi.
“People were so unbelievably generous,” she reflects. “I was working for a private hospital in Auckland at the time. They put on a big fundraising event for me on my birthday.”
Zazi headed to India in December 2022 and was away nearly eight weeks for the harrowing but ultimately life-changing treatment. Doctors matured her stem cells, then harvested them after a trigger shot released them into her blood.
Zazi and Kate then headed into isolation. During that time, she endured high-dose chemotherapy over several days to destroy the remaining cells in her bone marrow, before the thawed stem cells were returned to her body.
“I was so unwell during the chemo and it was incredibly distressing for mum,” she says. “Even though I felt awful, I was so excited the day I got my stem cells back. This was the most risky part of the whole treatment. I seemed to come through it fine, but I went into shock sometime later when I got up to go to the toilet. It was terrifying. I thought I was going to die.”
Zazi’s medical team got her through the serious reaction and back on the road to recovery. When she returned to New Zealand in late January 2023, she remained isolated at home for three months to protect her brand-new immune system.
Her first time back at the gym was a major milestone, Zazi tells.
“I couldn’t really do anything and I was wiping everything down with alcohol tenfold, but I was so excited to be back.”
As she started to build herself up physically, Zazi set herself a goal to deadlift a personal best of 100kg. Seven months after her stem cell transplant, she did it, with her family and friends cheering her on.
“I was in tears after I did the lift,” she shares. “It was a major milestone of my recovery.”
Watch Zazi’s inspiring story of resilience on Unbreakable, 8.30pm Tuesday on TVNZ 1 and TVNZ+.
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