Two Nigeria Celebrities Artist Hit by Paralysis and Cancer

An ill wind seems to be more than ever before blowing across the land particularly where creative people are concerned. No sooner had veteran actor Peter Bunor began recovery from the stroke that affected him earlier in the year than it was the turn of Oyerinde Olotu, a visual artist, to suffer from the same condition.

Olotu at work (in healthier days)

Olotu, for who plans were in top gear to celebrate his 55th birthday with one of the biggest exhibitions of his painting career, has been hit with paralysis caused by stroke and is unable to use his limbs or utter a word. Word exclusively reached Friday Flavour yesterday afternoon that he is being treated in a Lagos hospital.
Olotu, who hails from Ondo State, has been a painter for four decades; an art form which he adopted in the documentation of Nigerian history over the years. Commenting in an earlier interview with Friday Flavour during his fifth solo exhibition titled: ‘This Lagos….A Canvass’, held on October 1 2012, Olotu had told our correspondent that it had a great impact on the society because it was it was well-attended.
“The reaction was positive. As far as I am concerned it was highly encouraging and gives me more impetus to work even more. It will prepare me for more exhibitions in the future”, he had said then. That future is not to take place soon, because Olotu is now suffering from the debilitating effect of stroke.
The painter had also revealed then that an exhibition is not an affair that should take place often as one needs to sit down and plan before doing it. The retrospective birthday exhibition, now put off until further notice as his family is more concerned with having him get well soon, was to mark the artist turning 55.
However, it is not all gloom and bad news in the creative industry as veteran actress, Ngozi Nwosu, who left the country on February 26 to seek treatment in the United Kingdom is back; she returned on May 7. When Nwosu travelled, a lot of people in and out of Nollywood circuit were afraid for her life perhaps because only late last year, veteran actor, Enebeli Elebuwa, had died in a hospital in India. Her family, friends and well wishers can breathe a sigh of relief now, even though her publicist is reported to have said that she is due back for check up in a few months.

Vast

However, while everyone was celebrating Nwosu’s return, the news of Vast, one half of the musical duo, Bracket, being diagnosed with Lymphoma broke on social media yesterday.
The singer was said to have been diagnosed in February this year after suffering serious body pains, headaches, non-stop coughing, loss of weight and weakness while in Paris for a show. He flew to London where a test conducted determined he had cancer. Vast has been in treatment at the Wellington Hospital in the United Kingdom since February and is said to be responding very well to treatment. He has undergone four circles of chemotherapy with each circle costing about N1.4 million. He will do a few more before returning to Nigeria next month.
What is sad is that tests were said to have been conducted in the country but with a wrong diagnosis, reminiscent of what happened to the late Gani Fawehinmi who was reported to have been diagnosed with asthma but actually had lung cancer.
Stroke is a sudden loss of brain function caused by a blockage or rupture of a blood vessel of the brain, resulting in necrosis of brain tissue (called a cerebral infarct) and characterised by loss of muscular control, weakening or loss of sensation or consciousness, dizziness, slurred speech, or other symptoms that vary with the extent and severity of brain damage. It is also called cerebrovascular accident.
Bunor, who described stroke as a terrible experience, had appeared in soap operas like Cock Crow at Dawn, Wind of Destiny, Checkmate and Mirror in the Sun, before taking part in Glamour Girls 20 years ago. He has however been inactive in the industry lately because of the stroke. But the good news is that he is recovering.
Lymphoma, on the other hand, is a type of blood cancer that occurs when B or T lymphocytes, the white blood cells that form a part of the immune system and help protect the body from infection and disease, begin behaving abnormally.