Outrage has trailed the decision of a Lagos-based breast cancer patient, Mensah Omolola, popularly known on X as Auntie Esther, to reject a medically advised blood transfusion, weeks after Nigerians rallied to raise over N30m for her treatment.
The 38-year-old, who is a member of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, is currently receiving care at the Lakeshore Cancer Centre in Lagos.
Her case gained wide attention in November after she appeared in a viral video appealing for financial assistance to begin treatment.
Earlier in October, a video she made to draw attention to her plight raised doubts that she might be faking her illness to rip Nigerians off.
Reacting to comments disparaging the video, she said, People that say am scammer thank you. People wey say am disappointed thank you, thank you. People that say she wan use d money on herself thank you. People that say no person de patronise me again thank you.
In another video, she agreed to seek donations from the public, entrusting prominent X users, Dr Olusina Ajidahun (@the_beardedsina), Wisdom Obi-Dickson (@Wizarab10), (@AUNTYMUSE_), and Idanssss (@Nimisioluwa), with the responsibility.
Moved by her deteriorating condition, captured in a before and after photo showing significant weight loss, Nigerians donated N30,850,252 through a campaign coordinated by Obi-Dickson, with the support of other well-known X influencers.
However, the mood of Nigerians changed dramatically on Friday when Omolola revealed that she would not accept a blood transfusion, citing her faith as a Jehovah’s Witness.
In a post addressed to her supporters, she said her doctors had recommended chemotherapy, but she would rely on injections and food supplements to boost her blood count instead.
She wrote in part, I respect everyone’s opinion, but I and my family choose the injection and food wey go boost my blood. Doc accept my decision and say she go follow me.
Her position immediately sparked outrage, with many Nigerians questioning why public funds were raised if she planned to reject a critical component of her treatment.
Obi-Dickson, who spearheaded the donation drive, accused her of downplaying key details in her public explanation.
According to him, She deliberately refused to disclose that she was asked to do a blood transfusion, but she refused. It was important she told the public herself.
He added that after weeks of emotional strain, he and other volunteers had withdrawn from the case.
Her family have said whatever happens to her is the will of God, while fighting against blood transfusion… It is best we leave her in their care if religion trumps medical science, he said.
Another supporter, Aunty Muse, who had reportedly spent weeks caring for Omolola at the hospital, was praised by many online users but accused by some of enabling the woman’s decision, a claim she has denied.
There are fears that Omolola’s chances of survival may diminish without a transfusion, especially ahead of chemotherapy sessions known to weaken blood count.
Jehovah’s Witnesses are known for refusing whole-blood transfusions based on their interpretation of biblical texts, though many opt for non-blood alternatives.
We learnt that similar cases have been recorded in Nigeria, involving Jehovah’s Witness adherents who declined transfusion even in life-threatening conditions.
The controversy has now split opinion online. While many Nigerians insist the funds should be redirected to another patient willing to undergo full treatment, others argue that her religious rights must be respected.
For now, Omolola remains in the hospital, preparing for chemotherapy under what doctors described as a modified plan, though supporters say they are unsure what comes next.
In his continued criticism, Obi-Dickson alleged that Omolola had attempted to mislead those coordinating her care.
In fact, Aunty Esther asked her to lie to Dr Sina and me about her decision, but she refused. Aunty Esther is not a good or honest person. I’m not sure what to do with the money now, but I’ll be happy to leave it in the care of the family or church to do as they please. Dr Sina and I have agreed to compensate @AUNTYMUSE_ for her time and effort. It is an uneasy job to be a caregiver, he wrote.
The controversy deepened after investigative journalist David Hundeyin condemned her decision, saying her religious doctrine was interfering with life-saving medical treatment.
He argued that Omolola’s refusal reflected a form of mental colonisation.
Hundeyin wrote, “This person has probably never left Nigeria before in her life and cannot locate Brooklyn on an unmarked map of the world. But a group of Muzungus in Brooklyn are making her decisions for her, up to and including whether she chooses to live or die. And THAT is what it means to be colonised. Whether you have a flag and national anthem or not, you morons are still under occupation.
Another X user, David Onyemaizu, faulted her stance, stressing that she had battled cancer with little to no support from her congregation.
He stated that while her church did not assist or accompany her to the hospital, strangers rose to her aid when the situation became dire.
A lot of people contributed money; they didn’t have to, because of humanity. Now you’re holding on tightly to the same religious beliefs that made your condition worse in the first place. It is your choice anyway; we have done our best, he wrote.
However, a self-identified Jehovah’s Witness member on X, Emmanuel Philip (@naijashimadunnn), countered the criticisms directed at the denomination.
He described it as painful to see Omolola seek public donations, insisting that Witnesses are well supported internally.
No Witness ever needs to beg from the world. Jehovah has provided more than enough through the congregation, the circuit, the branch, and the worldwide brotherhood to cover medical bills, living expenses, food, transport, everything, especially in serious illness, he claimed.
His defence angered many Nigerians, including Nollywood actress Kate Henshaw, who accused the JW community of failing to support Omolola until outsiders intervened.
With all that is good and kind in me, I say this unequivocally: you are ungrateful. With all that @Wizarab10, @the_beardedsina and @AUNTYMUSE_ did to help Esther all this while, you and your people did not jump in to save the day. God does not do ugly, she wrote.
As of the time of filing this report, Nigerians remained sharply divided.
While some argued that the donated funds should no longer be handed to Omolola or her congregation, others suggested that the money be redirected to another patient facing similar life-threatening circumstances.
MedStar Health, an online portal, explains that blood transfusion entails giving blood or blood components to a patient through a narrow tube inserted into a vein to replace lost blood due to injury, illness, or surgery.
According to an American publication, The BMJ, 75 Witnesses die each year in the United States alone due to refusal to accept blood transfusion.
We gathered that in Nigerian health facilities, many patients who identify as Jehovah’s Witnesses have vehemently refused blood transfusion, leading to controversy between relatives and medical health workers.
I have family friends who have died because of the belief. One of them had a first-class degree and was about to start her scholarship programme in the United Kingdom, only to die while giving birth because she refused a blood transfusion, a man named Bright Omorodion.
Similarly, an X user, Mrs Zanga (@Mrs Zanga), who described herself as a former Jehovah’s Witness, claimed that some members of her family had died after they refused a blood transfusion.
Our second son died because my parents refused him a blood transfusion. He was a sickle cell patient, and they’re hoping to see him again in paradise because he died upholding his beliefs (he was an eight-year-old boy). My mum’s sister died during childbirth because she needed a blood transfusion, but was also upholding her beliefs.
My cousin died during a major surgery that needed blood transfusions because she’s upholding her belief of no blood transfusion. So nothing happens in cases like Aunty Esther’s. If she pulls through, glory be to Jehovah, but if she doesn’t, she died upholding her beliefs and she sure has resurrection hope, she wrote.
A Jehovah’s Witness website, JW.org, states that there are 406,732 Witnesses, referred to as “ministers who teach the Bible, in Nigeria.
The site notes that medical treatments that avoid blood transfusions are cost-effective.
It describes as unfounded claims that many Witnesses, including children, die each year as a result of refusing blood transfusions.
Surgeons regularly perform such complex procedures as heart operations, orthopaedic surgery, and organ transplants without the use of blood transfusions.
Patients, including children, who do not receive transfusions usually fare as well as or better than those who do accept transfusions. In any case, no one can say for certain that a patient will die because of refusing blood or will live because of accepting it, the site stated.
Citing several Bible verses, the site said the matter is more of a religious issue than a medical one, adding, Both the Old and New Testaments clearly command us to abstain from blood. Also, God views blood as a symbol of life. So we avoid taking blood not only in obedience to God but also out of respect for him as the Giver of life.
Meanwhile, in January 2020, the Lagos State Government made an overriding life-saving intervention by rescuing a 14-day-old baby girl after her parents refused to allow her to undergo a blood transfusion, citing religious beliefs.
In the report published by PUNCH Healthwise, the state government, through the Office of the Public Defender, applied for a court order under the Child Rights Law.
After a clash with members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses, who had mobilised to resist treatment, the infant was taken to the hospital, where the blood transfusion was carried out.
The Head of Public Affairs, OPD, Mahmud Hassan, explained that the child, born prematurely at a private hospital in Surulere to Mr and Mrs Emmanuel Onokpise of Abata Close, Orile-Iganmu, was found to be severely jaundiced and was advised to undergo an urgent blood transfusion.
However, the parents, who are Jehovah’s Witnesses and enrolled on medical insurance, vehemently rejected the transfusion on religious grounds.
Against medical advice, they discharged the baby and took her home. The infant’s critical condition, coupled with the parents’ refusal, prompted a concerned member of the public to alert the OPD to save the child from possible death.
The agency immediately took action, obtained a court order under the Lagos Child Rights Law, 2015, and the Lagos State Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy of 2016.
In collaboration with officers at the Adeniji-Adele and Orile divisions of the Nigeria Police, the baby was retrieved from the parents’ residence after strong resistance from members of the Jehovah’s Witnesses on 30 December 2019.
The infant was subsequently taken to Massey Street Children’s Hospital, he said.
Hassan added that the child, who weighed 2.2kg at birth, had dropped to below 1.7kg after being kept at home for one week and five days.
Reacting to the matter, Consultant Obstetrician and Gynaecologist at the Federal Medical Centre Ikole Ekiti, Dr Babatunde Rosiji, said blood transfusion is one of the basic interventions in medical practice for life-saving.
He stated that patients cannot be compelled to undergo treatment against their will.
Rosiji explained, The condition that requires blood transfusion can be from acute or chronic causes. We are aware that some certain religious sects, like the JW, decline blood transfusions. When it comes to medical care, except probably for underage and people who don’t have the mental capacity to make decisions.
We can’t force a management plan on any patient even if the patient requires blood and he or she declines the blood transfusion. The little we can do as medical practitioners is to let them know the benefit of the blood transfusion and the dangers that are inherent in the decision to decline it.
If a patient refuses our line of management, there is what we call informed consent or written consent where the patient put it down in writing and that he or she has been counselled on the need for blood transfusion; however, due to my religious belief I have opted not to receive blood and I understand the severity of my decision for documentation. However, there is a caveat to all of this.
A lawyer and rights activist, Ridwan Abdulkareem, noted that a doctor cannot treat a patient, regardless of the condition, without the patient’s consent.
He added that if such treatment is carried out without the patient’s agreement, it amounts to a violation of the patient’s fundamental rights and could expose the doctor and the hospital to legal consequences.
Abdulkareem noted, Before they embark on treatments, they have to sign, which is a procedure under medical ethics. This procedure must be duly followed. There was a case like this when a JW member said he didn’t need blood, but the doctor said he needed it. They couldn’t force the patient to receive blood under the law because it was against the patient’s religion. The patient did not take the blood and died later.
If the patient refuses and is being forced, that is an infringement on the patient’s fundamental rights. In this case, the doctor should not treat the patient if the patient has said it is against her religion. They should move such a patient away from the hospital since the patient is not complying with the hospital.
Sunday Punch Report.
