Miriam Mutebi, Breast Surgical Oncologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Surgery at the Aga Khan University Hospital, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“There’s something about standing in the Valley of the Kings that makes you pause and breathe differently.
Beneath cliffs that have witnessed millennia of ambition, loss, renewal, and legacy, you can’t help but reflect on the stories we carry and the work we choose.
The Egyptians believed in preparing for the afterlife, yes, but they also believed in living a life worthy of being remembered. There is something quietly powerful in that balance.
As I walked through this ancient landscape, I found myself thinking about the journeys of the patients and families we serve: their courage, their uncertainty, their moments of fear, and their extraordinary capacity for hope.
In oncology, we speak often about prolonging life and improving its quality, but we sometimes forget that our work sits at the intersection of life, meaning, and legacy.
We accompany people through their most vulnerable chapters. We fight for systems that honor their dignity, uplift their stories, and surround them with compassion.
This trip to Egypt brought that truth into sharp focus.
The centers I visited, marked by warmth, excellence, and deep community trust, showed me what leadership rooted in humanity looks like.
The teams I met embodied a rare blend of clarity, compassion, and purpose. Their commitment to serving their communities, often in challenging contexts, was profoundly inspiring.
It reminded me that building in hard places is still building. And that excellence grounded in care can change lives.
And here, in a place built for kings yet shaped by human hands, I felt a quiet affirmation:
The work we do is not just clinical.
It is human
It is relational.
It is about helping people live fully, be seen deeply, and feel supported on every step of their journey.
Cancer teaches us that life is both fragile and astonishingly resilient.
Egypt teaches us that meaning, and indeed beauty, can be found even in the harshest landscapes.
Together, they remind me why we build:
To create systems that honor life, hold people gently, and ensure that no one walks their path alone.”
More posts featuring Miriam Mutebi.