A New York City nightlife expert, loved by everyone from Celine Dion to Selena Gomez, revealed his shocking colon cancer diagnosis at the age of 54.
Desta, who only goes by her first name, spent more than three decades working in the fashion and nightlife industries, but told DailyMail.com that maintaining her health was her top priority.
His diet consisted of multiple juices and one solid meal a day, and he told this website: “I usually ate one meal a day, towards the end of the day and when I woke up in the morning I always had a fresh juice from an organic store. containing greens, turmeric and ginger.
The illustrious party planner, events director and public relations consultant, who ran the exclusive members-only Chapel Bar, said his only “bad guilty pleasure was eating a large meal late at night with a glass of wine “.
But because she lived a healthy lifestyle and didn’t have cancer in her family, Desta was shocked when doctors told her she had stage 3 colon cancer in September.
However, looking back at this lifestyle, he believes his nighttime bites and alcohol consumption could have been a contributing factor to his illness.
The native Ethiopian said: ‘My evening meal was pasta or rice with red wine. I feel like that’s what triggered it.”
And a study published earlier this year could support Desta’s theory. Researchers found that eating three hours before bed at least four days a week could increase the chances of developing colorectal cancer.
Desta spent more than three decades working in the fashion and nightlife industries, but told DailyMail.com that maintaining her health was always of utmost importance.
Researchers at Rush University School of Medicine in Chicago questioned 664 people undergoing colonoscopy to screen for cancer, and 42 percent said they ate late.
This group was 46 percent more likely than late eaters to have an adenoma (a small, non-cancerous lesion) found during their colonoscopy.
An adenoma is not cancer itself, but it is estimated that between five and 10 percent of them become cancerous over time.
While Desta consumed mostly fruits and vegetables during the day, he turned to carbohydrates and alcohol at night.
She said: “During lunchtime, I would have another smoothie but with more ingredients, my favorite additions being kefir milk, blueberries, papaya or mango and a little salt.”
Going a step further, twice a week I “supplemented the green juice with a detox juice containing carrots, beets, celery, apples, turmeric and ginger” and took a cocktail of vitamin tablets – “usually C, D and B” . ‘ – and glutathione to stimulate healthy liver function.
But after going out to clubs he indulged in meals based on pasta, rice and wine: “These carbohydrate-rich foods are pure sugar and I ate them very late at night after going out to bars and clubs.”
Dr. Suneel Kamath, a gastrointestinal oncologist at the Cleveland Clinic in Ohio, told DailyMail.com that in Desta’s case, alcohol could have contributed to her cancer, but the “myth” that sugar causes cancer is “100% percent a myth… so the In this case the pasta was not the problem at all.’
However, Dr. Kamath added: “I agree that wine definitely increases the risk of colon cancer, among many other types of cancer.”
«The alcohol in wine breaks down into oxidants (the most talked about in the media is acetaldehyde), which can damage the DNA of cells and cause them to mutate into cancer cells.
“While a glass of wine a day was once thought to be beneficial for heart health, it actually turns out that any alcohol, including wine, is not beneficial for heart health and also increases the risk of developing many types cancer, including colon, breast, esophageal, gastric, throat/tongue, and liver cancer.
“Actually, no matter what type of alcoholic beverage (beer, liquor or wine), they are all equally carcinogenic, since an equivalent amount of alcohol content is consumed.”
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services recommends that people consume alcohol “in moderation,” with women having no more than one drink a day or seven drinks a week and, for men, the allowed amount is doubled.
Desta said the first sign of colon cancer was a change in his bowel habits this spring, a common symptom experienced by colon cancer patients, but one that is often misdiagnosed, delaying crucial treatment.
At first he thought they were his daily juices, so he eliminated them.
The illustrious party animal, who most recently ran the now-defunct members-only club Chapel Bar, said his only “bad guilty pleasure was eating a large meal late at night with a glass of wine.”
But when his symptoms didn’t go away, he visited a doctor for a checkup.
Detailing the chain of events, he said: “A couple of months before June, I started to get the feeling that something wasn’t quite right and I had a really strange bowel movement.
“It wasn’t exactly diarrhea, but I felt my stomach everywhere. I’m very in tune with my body and how I feel, so for a long time I knew something wasn’t right.
‘I thought it might be my juices so I stopped drinking them, but my bowel movements didn’t really change much… it was a bit chaotic.
‘But the bowel movements came and went and I didn’t feel pain or anything. I just made sure I was very attentive to what was coming out of me.’
Her doctor ordered blood tests and said there was nothing wrong, other than she had low vitamin D and high cholesterol.
However, these subtle signs were an indicator of a larger problem.
Epidemiological studies suggest that vitamin D deficiency increases the incidence of colon cancer and there is a potential link between high cholesterol levels and increased risk.
Because her mother and aunt were very ill in Ethiopia, Desta left New York over the summer thinking her health was fine, but while she was away, her condition worsened and she noticed blood in her stool.
Desta booked a flight back to Manhattan and immediately had a colonoscopy, the standard test for colon cancer.
Doctors discovered two cancerous masses in his colon and diagnosed him with stage III cancer.
Instead of removing the masses, doctors at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center decided to put Desta on a three-month chemotherapy treatment plan.
A prominent figure on the New York social scene, Desta said it was impossible to hide his cancer and that his black palms from chemotherapy were a clear indication that something was wrong, as was his lack of energy.
Since revealing his battle with cancer, Desta says he has been “shocked by the outpouring of love” from members of his community.
Most recently, Josh Wyatt, CEO of top Manhattan club Brooklyn Mirage, hosted a fundraiser to raise money for Desta’s cancer treatment, which was attended by over 500 guests, including world-class DJs and artists.
And despite the closure, his former boss at Chapel Bar expanded his health insurance to help with treatment costs, while his friends have set up a GoFundMe.
Desta said: ‘I don’t believe in keeping secrets, especially about something like this. I believe in spirituality. I believe in people. That’s my illness. I love people.
‘So when you tell people these things, your challenges, they think about you. They pray for you. That’s why I believe the energy really uplifts and heals. So I didn’t want to hide it.
dr Pashtoon Kasi, medical director of gastrointestinal medical oncology at City of Hope Orange County in California, told DailyMail.com that stories like Desta’s are unfortunately on the rise.
He said exposure to toxins, lifestyle habits and diet, especially the consumption of ultra-processed foods, can create conditions that influence the development of cancer at an earlier age.
Additionally, researchers are beginning to investigate how childhood antibiotic exposure is associated with the development of colorectal cancer, as well as examining how the body’s microbiome plays a role.
In a bid to curb rising cancer rates among younger people, Dr Kasi said “education is vital.”
He added: “Younger adults need to understand the symptoms and prioritize screening tests, which help detect cancer in its earliest, most treatable stages.”
‘Community physicians should also stay informed about these trends and proactively request necessary tests or studies if symptoms persist.
‘Lifestyle changes are equally important. Regular exercise, a healthy diet, reducing alcohol consumption, not smoking, and avoiding ultra-processed foods are tangible essential steps until we better understand what else contributes.
“In addition, it is essential to continue investing in cancer research.”
Desta’s story comes amid an explosion of cancers in young people around the world, with colon cancer among the fastest rising.
Diagnoses are expected to increase by 90 percent in people ages 20 to 34 between 2010 and 2030.
The five-year survival rate for colon cancer is 64 percent, but it drops to 14 percent if the cancer has spread, which commonly occurs in early-onset cases because symptoms are often not present. or are misdiagnosed until the cancer has spread throughout the body. .
Symptoms include changes in toilet habits, blood in the stool, weakness, fatigue, nausea, loss of appetite, a lump in the abdomen or rectum, diarrhea, abdominal cramps, constipation, and vomiting.
Now, Desta is undergoing treatment and her doctors are hopeful that chemotherapy will help her enter remission.