top of page
SALT & LIGHT INTERVIEW - PART 2
by Christine Leow // July 29, 2026, 4:05 pm
Robin Png's multiple encounters with cancer were what gave him the opportunity to see
God at work in his life. All photos courtesy of Robin Png.
It began with blood in his saliva in 2012. The symptom was so ominous that Robin Png went straight to a doctor who referred him to an Ear and Nose (ENT) specialist.
The diagnosis was not good: Stage 3 nose cancer. What started out as cancer in the nose had spread to lymph nodes on the right and the left.
“I had been a Commando in the army and, later, a Physical Training instructor. I was always healthy. At the time, I was only 49,” said Robin, now 64.
“I thought it was a death sentence.”
“We have history”
For two days, Robin wrestled with God about his condition, uncertain as to how to tell his wife Jennifer.
Robin and his wife Jennifer whom he met when her church visited the Bible school
in which he was enrolled.
One afternoon, as he knelt in his living room crying before God and pouring his heart out to Him, he heard a Voice within him speak: “We have history together.”
He knew immediately that it was God.
Said Robin: “That moment, I paused and started to recall how I was saved since the age of 17. The memories of my Christian life and faith in the army, how I shared Christ with people, how I brought friends to church, how active I was in church. It all came back to me.
Robin on board a ship during his polytechnic days when he was doing Nautical Studies.
“I saw God’s goodness and protection throughout those years. That became a turning point for me.”
After that, he told Jennifer about his cancer. Together, they wept.
God in the side effects
Doctors put Robin on 33 sessions of radiotherapy along with weekly chemotherapy for two months.
“I suffered side effects. My whole neck turned black from the radiation. I had ulcers in my mouth, difficulty swallowing and my tastebuds were affected. Even plain water tasted sour.
“My appetite was gone. I couldn’t eat, not even porridge. I went from 62kg to 54kg. I became bony.”
But the worst side effect of all was the insomnia which lasted for weeks. One night, in desperation, Robin prayed: “God, I don’t have more than two hours of sleep every night. I wake up like a zombie, I have no strength. Help me sleep.”
That night, he had a dream in two parts. In the first, he saw two children playing a clapping game in the garden. They were very cheerful. In the next scene, their parents came to pick them up, both wearing red T-shirts with the words “Have faith in God”.
When Robin awoke, he understood the meaning behind the dream.
“God was telling me to have child-like faith in Him. When I looked at the clock, I realised that five hours had passed. I had slept for five hours. I was so thankful.”
After that, things improved and Robin was able to settle in during the night much better. When the treatment was completed, all the cancer was eradicated. Robin thought the worst was over.
But two years later, the cancer returned at the exact same location – the nose.
“You have three to six months to live”
This time, doctors told him to undergo surgery to remove the tumour. The procedure was a success.
Three years later in 2017, Robin received bad news again. He had acute myeloid leukemia.
“The oncologist got a hematologist to come over and he told me, ‘Mr Png, this cancer is very aggressive. You have three to six months to live.”
“My mind was a blank when I heard that,” Robin admitted. “Was I prepared to die? I had no answer to that. There was a lot of fear.”
His only hope was chemotherapy followed by a stem cell transplant. The chance of a match for such a transplant was 1 in 20,000. If he had siblings, the odds of a match would go up to 1 in 4.
On the way to have a port implanted on his upper left chest for drawing blood and
administering chemotherapy. Robin underwent seven straight days of chemotherapy.
“When I told the doctor I had 11 siblings, she was very happy.”
God provided in another way. The sibling who was the closest match was his older brother who was 59 at the time. Had he been a year older, he would have been considered too old to be a donor.
“It was God’s will. And my brother was also willing to give me his stem cells.”
Days of reflection
Robin spent the days during which he underwent chemotherapy and stem cell transplant doing serious soul searching.
“I thought about whether I was sure I would go to heaven if I died. I thought about any regrets I had in my life, and how to move forward and face challenges.
“God did not answer immediately. But I revisited my faith.”
After his first battle with cancer, Robin had sold his counselling practice and started cancer support groups to journey with those with cancer and their caregivers. During those years, he had shared more than 100 verses with those with whom he had journeyed. Those verses came to mind during his reflections.
He realised, for example, that the guilt, regret and condemnation that dogged him did not come from God (Romans 8:1). Even if he were to die, it would not be a premature death.
“God already recorded the number of days in our lives even before we are born (Psalm 139:16). Those verses were very helpful.”
From that season of meditation, Robin wrote a book of 30 devotions for cancer patients called My Grace is Sufficient.
God was there once more
As it was during treatment for the nose cancer, treatment this time around for leukemia was difficult. Robin found himself marking his days by the expression on his doctor’s face.
“If he was smiling, then I knew it was a good result. If he was quiet, it was bad. Then I was reminded of Philippians 4:6 to be anxious for nothing but to pray.
“God told me, ‘You’re anxious because you look at the face of the doctor. Your faith was in your doctor, in man.’”
Robin repented.
He had to endure side effects of the treatment as well. Among the worst was the need to urinate hourly and experiencing diarrhea up to five times a day.
“I would wake up in the morning exhausted because, during the night, I woke up every hour. I know it was every hour because I would look at the clock.
“They told me it was a rare side effect. I saw the urologist twice and he said, ‘No need to come and see me anymore. I have run out of ideas to help you.’
“That was very discouraging.”
One day as Robin was leaving the urology clinic, he heard a Voice say: “When doctors cannot do anything, I can do something.”
He looked around, but there was no one near him.
“I knew it was the Holy Spirit. When I went home, I felt strengthened. God didn’t heal me instantly, but He gave me strength to go through it. Slowly, the side effects disappeared.”
On another occasion, doctors found three cells in Robin’s blood work that made them suspect his cancer had returned.
“I went home feeling very worried. But as I read John 15:7, I felt Jesus telling me to ask Him for whatever I wanted and it would be done for me.
“Like a child, I prayed and asked, ‘Lord, take away those three cells.’”
When Robin returned to the doctor, the doctor told him that two of the cells had disappeared and that the third was too small to be of any significance. There was no relapse.
It has been over nine years since and Robin remains cancer-free.
“My doctor told me that for my type of cancer, based on my medical history, no one has survived more than five years. She is a Christian, and she added, ‘This is the grace of God.’”
With the comfort received
In the beginning of 2020, after Robin had gone through treatment for leukemia and had returned to good health, he started Restorative Hearts Ministry (RHM).
The organisation journeys with cancer patients, survivors and their caregivers, offering talks, support groups, counselling and pastoral care, and hospital and home visits. Because many on the cancer journey also struggle with their mental health, RHM supports them in their mental wellness journey as well.
Robin (right) and his wife Jennifer (centre) with the RHM team of volunteers.
RHM reaches out to believers and pre-believers alike. Through its work of care and support, some have come to the faith and have been baptised by Robin. Theologically trained and with several years of experience as a Pastor, he has also conducted Christian wake and funeral services for them.
“In 2012, when I was seeking the Lord on what to do after I had nose cancer, I heard the Voice of the Lord say, ‘Minister to the poor and sick.’ That was why I started my first cancer support group.
“Now my direction is towards ministering to the poor spiritually and physically, including orphans, as well as the sick.”
Asked if he was ever angry with God for the multiple cancers, Robin said: “I look back and see that God is able to make something beautiful in His time. I wouldn’t have started this ministry if not for my journey.
“Cancer is not a gift from God, but the cancer journey is a gift from God. Through my cancer journey, I revisited my faith and drew closer to God. I found more meaning and purpose in life.”
This articles first appeared on Salt&Light.
https://saltandlight.sg
bottom of page