DHQ Carlene’s sister gets help in cancer fight - Sizzla to perform fundraiser

A birthday bash and fundraiser for Pinky, the sister of Dancehall Queen Carlene, will be held at MECA on February 7 with headline act Sizzla Kalonji and music by Stone Love.

Pinky, who turns 59 on February 8, remains in celebratory mode, and is focused on beating the odds. She was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2020, and after thinking that she had beaten the disease, received the news in 2022 that it had spread to other parts of her body. She is now living with stage-four cancer.

Allowing Carlene to do most of the talking with THE WEEKEND STAR, Pinky had one message about family and breast cancer awareness.

"It's good when you have family and friends around you to support you. That help build up yuh hopes high. And please, go get oonu test ... do everything, because it really important. It makes a difference."

Carlene shared that when Pinky was first diagnosed, the results showed that there was "just a little lump", for which she was treated with radiation. Everybody thought all was well because the doctors said she didn't need her breast to be removed.

"We were hoping that it would be one-two-three, and we would do the treatments and move on, but things got worse. In 2022 January, Pinky went for her check-up and that's when we heard that the cancer was in her lymph nodes, and things went downhill hearing all that went wrong, or went right. Then Pinky did radiation, chemotherapy, and none of them worked for her. She went down to 93 pounds and it made her really sick," explained Carlene, who is organising the fundraiser. The next step for the family was to seek holistic treatment, which Carlene said is working.

"It is more long-term and it is very expensive ... but in my opinion it's working," Carlene added. She said that Pinky has come to terms with the diagnosis.

"She just accept it now and we are trying to do what is best. Friends have been very kind. Lena British did her birthday bash last year and she said, 'Pinky is my friend and I want to contribute', and so she gave her some of the funds. Then we had Beenie and Bounty, who did that charity event for her last year at MECA, and with all of this Wee Pow of Stone Love has been a part of her journey. I also have to thank Michael Dawson and the Whirlwind Entertainment Group, because he gave us the club free of cost," she said.

Heaping praise on Pinky, Carlene referred to her as "an awesome human being" who is loved by many persons in the music fraternity.

"Pinky knows Sizzla as Miguel ... from before he was Sizzla Kalonji. He said he wanted to celebrate her birthday with her and I thought, let's do this as a fundraiser for Pinky's cancer treatment, and everybody we reached out to came on board willingly," Carlene said.