Newspaper Mail | Léo Gamalho recalls the discovery of cancer: ‘It wasn’t easy’

After more than a month of waiting, Léo Gamalho can finally reinforce Vitória again. Recovered from surgery to remove skin cancer, the player was cleared by the club’s medical department and is available to coach Léo Condé to face Vila Nova, for the 16th round of Serie B. ), at 8 pm, at the Oba stadium, in Goiânia.

This Saturday (8), the striker spoke for the first time after the recovery period. Gamalho told how the first moment of distrust was, when he noticed a small mole on his chest in January. The diagnosis of cancer, however, came months later. He stated that it was difficult to face the whole process and the fear of treatment. But he pointed out that, as he discovered early on, the chance of a cure was high.

“In January, I had discovered a mole on my chest. I was a bit suspicious, because this is not very normal. Over time, it got bigger. It made me a little worried. Until April arrived, more or less, I said with Dr. Marcelo Cortês, here at the club. He referred me to a dermatologist. I went there, had it removed. And it was sent for a biopsy. From that moment on, I forgot about it. I didn’t think about it. Until there was a day when I got home, around 10 pm, 11 pm, and I received an email from the laboratory, saying that I needed to get in touch with them urgently. [no sistema do laboratório] and seeing the result, which was a melanoma. I contacted some doctors there, right away. And really their response was not very positive. It was cancer. I put my life in God’s hands, trusting and believing.”

“As time went by, I discovered that, as I discovered very early on, the chance of cure was much greater. And that’s what happened. God guided the doctors’ steps, the diagnosis improved, until I went to have the surgery. And , soon after, you found out,” he continued.

Léo Gamalho’s cancer diagnosis was only revealed to the press on June 6, after the surgical procedure had already been performed. At the time, the striker was already absent from Vitória due to injury. He hasn’t been on the field since May 24, when he was one of the starters in the 1-0 over CRB, in Barradão, for the 8th round of Série B.

The attacker said that, at first, he also preferred not to reveal the diagnosis to his teammates. According to him, the idea was to avoid a possible influence of the news on the group, amid the dispute of Série B.

“When you found out, I had already had the surgery. Thank God, it had been a success. But, until then, I was keeping more to myself, I didn’t want to influence my teammates. That didn’t change the results. Here I am, working, being able to do my best. A lot went through my head. But now it’s not the case. It’s important that I’m going to be available to the teacher, and it’s an immense joy to play again, be on the field and do what I love to do ‘, he spoke.

Today recovered, Gamalho admitted: facing cancer in recent weeks has changed the way he sees football.

“We have to value some moments. Sometimes, we stay in so many games, trips. We follow so much violence, so much pressure. We forget that football is a sport that brings us emotion, pleasure. We have a great responsibility, but sometimes we forget the root, the basis of everything, which is doing what you like, what you love. In these sequences, there were moments when I just asked God to heal me and be well to go back to playing , doing what I like most. We may think that nothing happens to us, but we are very fragile. You know very little or almost nothing, everything is in God’s hands. I believe He has a plan for all of this. And I hope to live up to his plan.”