Cancer Awareness

CANCER AWARENESS : CANCER IS CURABLE

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

A way to help

Hello All,

After returning from Global Cancer summit, I am much aware of the concern, world has. 'Cancer is Curable', this the motto. 26 Indian NGO's are there, they are working passionately for the cause.

This information is about one NGO, who is working from New Delhi.

Hope this works for betterment of the cause.

Aware Cancer

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INDIAN CANCER WINNERS’ ASSOCIATION

A mission to “Win over Cancer”

(A Unit of I Can Win Foundation) Regd. Office: D-10/54, Sec-7, Rohini, New Delhi– 110085
Tel: +9111-27933358. Email: http://in.mc952.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=icanwinassociation@gmail.com
http://www.icanwinassociation.blogspot.com/
http://www.winovercancer.com/

President : Dr Pawan Gupta M.Ch. Oncosurgeon; mob: 9811290152
Vision:

To change the way cancer is perceived by the society

Dear Winners',Greetings from Indian Cancer Winners' Association and best Wishes for the festive season ahead.With your help I CAN WIN Association has been able to change peoples' perception towards cancer. The associations endeavour to win over cancer creating awareness and early detection is possible only with your active participation.We are making more WINNERS, by changing lives helping in staying well with a positive spirit.I thank you on joining the campaign "WIN OVER CANCER",

I invite you for your comments and suggestions on our blogspotto keep this movement up and about
http://icanwinassociation.blogspot.com/search/label/ACTIVITIES

Just in case you are not already a member/friend/volunteer/donor, the form is attached for your ready utilization.

POSITIVE ABOUT LIFE - I CAN WINregardspawanDr Pawan Gupta MS, M.Ch, FSOG, FAISPresident Indian Cancer Winners' AssociationSr. Consultant Cancer Surgeon-- INDIAN

CANCER WINNERS ASSOCIATION“A mission to Win over Cancer ” (A Unit of I Can Win Foundation) Regd. Office: D-10/54, Sec-7, Rohini, New Delhi– 110085Tel: +9111-27933358. http://in.mc952.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=icanwinassociation@gmail.com http://www.icanwinassociation.blogspot.com/(Donations are exempt from Income Tax under Section 80G of the IT Act 1961)National Chapter:President:Dr Pawan Gupta M.Ch.Delhi 9811290152Vice President-Mr R.K.Goel MBA Ghaziabad 9810705342Dr Manish Wadhwa MD Faridabad 9811661298Secretary-Mr Suresh Prakash MBA Ghaziabad 9891948444 Faridabad Chapterhttp://icanwinassociation.blogspot.com/2009/07/i-can-win-faridabad-chapter-office.htmlPresident -Dr B.C.Gupta MD Faridabad 9810373490Secretary-Dr Prashant Gupta MD Palwal 9813389010 Moradabad ChapterPresident-Mr Yogendra Agarwal 9412244844Secretary-Mr J.S.Agarwal 09837050906Ghaziabad Chapter:President-Mrs Prabha Gupta 9650295190Secretary-Mr MAnish Goel 9999994737 Gurgoan Dr Amitabh Singh M.Ch. 9910302483

-- INDIAN CANCER WINNERS ASSOCIATION“A mission to Win over Cancer ” (A Unit of I Can Win Foundation) Regd. Office: D-10/54, Sec-7, Rohini, New Delhi– 110085Tel: +9111-27933358. http://in.mc952.mail.yahoo.com/mc/compose?to=icanwinassociation@gmail.com http://www.icanwinassociation.blogspot.com/(Donations are exempt from Income Tax under Section 80G of the IT Act 1961)National Chapter:President:Dr Pawan Gupta M.Ch.Delhi 9811290152Vice President-Mr R.K.Goel MBA Ghaziabad 9810705342Dr Manish Wadhwa MD Faridabad 9811661298Secretary-Mr Suresh Prakash MBA Ghaziabad 9891948444 Faridabad

Chapterhttp://icanwinassociation.blogspot.com/2009/07/i-can-win-faridabad-chapter-office.htmlPresident -Dr B.C.Gupta MD Faridabad 9810373490Secretary-Dr Prashant Gupta MD Palwal 9813389010 Moradabad ChapterPresident-Mr Yogendra Agarwal 9412244844Secretary-Mr J.S.Agarwal 09837050906Ghaziabad Chapter:President-Mrs Prabha Gupta 9650295190Secretary-Mr MAnish Goel 9999994737 Gurgoan Dr Amitabh Singh M.Ch. 9910302483

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Labels: Cancer, NGO

posted by Bhavya @ 6:27 PM 0 comments

Friday, August 28, 2009

LIVESTRONG GLOBAL CANCER SUMMIT 2009

bhavy

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posted by Bhavya @ 2:19 PM 1 comments

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

LIVESTRONG Global Cancer Summit 2009- Day1

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yr2U_cZV_Es

Hello All,

Its an achievement. The Global Cancer Summit organized by LIVESTRONG is a history. Around representatives from 60 coutries are attending this summit in Dublin Ireland. Lance Armstrong, cancer survivor and famous cyclist is behind all.

Its a great honour for India, that the summoit begins with an movie from Kerala. Some reacted positively on this.

The first day is little talky. Lance Armstrong attended two sessions, many health ministers, activist, NGO people, industry guys discussed cancer.

The summit first day is worthy, it generated a new view and discussion beyond various cultures, repreneted by people.

I also loved to listen the Egypt Health minister, regarding his views on expensive drugs and the take on industry.

Have connected...there is lot more to come..

Yours

Bhavya

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Cancer Awareness @ 12:27 AM 0 comments

Saturday, May 23, 2009

Eye on Cancer

Keep an eye on your child’s eyes: that white spot might be cancer

It was the third World Retinoblastoma Awareness Week from 10-16 May 2009. Time to take a look at a disease that is not be so deadly if diagnosed early

About 1500 children are diagnosed with a rare eye cancer, or retinoblastoma, every year in India। If an average Indian classroom has 50 students, the number afflicted with retinoblastoma would cover one whole school each इयर

The irony is, many of these children diagnosed with retinoblastoma will never go to school. Retinoblastoma primarily affects children between the ages of one and five years. Sadly, most of these children could have been learning their standing and sleeping lines if one informed adult had given a seemingly innocuous eye problem more thought.
According to Santosh Honavar, ocular oncologist with LV Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, and one of India’s most highly regarded retinoblastoma specialists, “The lives of 95% of children who receive protocol-based treatment can be saved.” Treatment can save the eyes of at least 70% of the children diagnosed overall. That’s 2,100 eyes saved every year. For the others, the only viable option is to remove the eye.
The reasoning sounds simple; but reality, whether in rural India or the national capital, is different.
What that long word means
Retinoblastoma is literally cancer that attacks the retina. Till a decade or so ago, this rare condition was fatal since just 3 of 10 advanced cases were curable.
Also Read more about retinoblastoma in our earlier article ‘Looking Ahead’
Advancements in early diagnosis and in treatment made it possible to cure 9 of 10 patients. In the last few years, say experts in India, the introduction of new treatment techniques such as periocular chemotherapy with nanoparticles has ensured that the vision and lives of 70% of children with advanced retinoblastoma are saved. This is a huge jump from the earlier 30%.
When ignorance is not bliss
Sadly, the 30% of children who lose their vision or even their life to retinoblastoma are not entirely let down by technology being beaten by a raging tumour. “The major loose link in retinoblastoma is the delay in diagnosis,” points out Dr Santosh Honavar, who continues to see patients in advanced stages. As you read this, Shreyas Barthwal of NOIDA, just 22 months old, battles retinoblastoma.
His parents were concerned about a squint in the right eye of their two-month-old baby and took him to several established hospitals, but paediatricians dismissed the squint as innocuous. Shreyas also had white flecks on his eye ball from the time he was a few months old. By the time the cancer was detected and treatment began at LV Prasad Eye Institute, Shreyas, an active and seemingly healthy baby, was about 18 months old. The tumour had spread to both eyes by then. While the average eyeball measures about 25mm across, the tumour in Shreyas’ right eye was 20mm. The right eye may have suffered irreparable damage, those treating him fear. Doctors are trying to save what they can of his left eye.
The Barthwals are coming to grips with the harm that the delay in diagnosis has caused. Says Shreyas’ father Naveen Barthwal, “My anger and agony are directed at the paediatricians we go to for routine vaccinations. They are authorized to treat the child, and it is their duty to spot minor abnormalities and conduct a complete examination of the child.”
Vijay Anand P Reddy, Director, Apollo Cancer Institute, Hyderabad and Consultant Oncologist, L V Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad, agrees: ”For children in the 0-4 years age group, the primary physician is the paediatrician: It is quite likely that every parent takes the child to see a paediatrician for either vaccination, a common cold or other problem. So I feel that paediatricians should be alert and consciously look into the eyes of the child who is in their care”. And it is incumbent on them to do so even when the parents do not report an eye problem.Yet, the eye check is often overlooked while doctors peer into problems of the ear, throat and nose. Just “asking the parents a question or two… will help the paediatrician identify if the child requires a complete eye examination,” adds Dr Reddy.
Vasantha Thavaraj, from the Department of Paediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Delhi is also Deputy Director (Indian Council of Medical Research). She has seen over 1,200 cases of retinoblastoma since 1990. Dr Thavaraj says, “Even ophthalmologists have misguided parents by prescribing eye drops for up to one year.”
Spreading the word
Some hospitals, such as AIIMS, are stepping up awareness drives among the lay parents as well as among doctors. The L V Prasad Eye Institute has distributed posters in Hindi, Telugu and English among paediatricians and ophthalmologists in Andhra Pradesh. And the initiative is working. Dr Thavaraj, who has spearheaded several awareness camps, has seen a change since 1990. “Earlier, I’d see patients in the advanced stage 4 all the time... Now, more than half the cases I see are intraocular retinoblastoma, which is a much earlier stage and curable. About 40% are advanced extra-ocular cases.”
Dr Thavaraj is now studying the possibility of introducing an eye screening programme with the mandatory immunization schedule. He would like to see each child have a separate eye health card and get screened for retinoblastoma. “I hope to train district-level doctors, including paediatricians, through workshops repeatedly for a year and then see how it goes.”
She has already carried out something similar in Najafgarh, Delhi, screening 700 children at the district hospital after their pulse polio immunization in 2005.
Two years down the line
That would bring some peace to the Barthwals who now spread the word about early symptoms of retinoblastoma wherever they can. “We cried all day when we learnt about Shreyas’ tumours,” recall the Barthwals. Through the six cycles of chemotherapy, they “wept and shattered a thousand times”. Because they know now what Dr Reddy points out: “With early diagnosis, we will be able to save the life of the child, the cancer can be treated so that the eyes are not removed and the child’s eyesight can be protected. The paediatrician is key to early diagnosis of retinoblastoma.”
Watch out!
Make it a habit to observe children’s eyes. Get them checked if you notice:
cat’s eye’ or a whitish pupil that reflects light
• a squint
• photograph shows no healthy red glint in the pupil (deplored as ‘red eye’, this is actually a sign of a normal retina)
• a spot growing on the iris
• a bulge in the eye
• unusual or uncoordinated eye movements
• complaints of floating spots or flashes of light
• a family history of retinoblastoma (the faulty Rb gene can lead to bilateral retinoblastoma, which affects both eyes: one of three cases is genetic, so if there is a family history, screen the child regularly until she is five years old)

Link- http://www.livemint.com/2009/05/18221318/Keep-an-eye-on-your-child821.html?h=B
Write to us at businessoflife@livemint.com

Send your doing's to aware।cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 5:56 PM 0 comments

Sunday, April 12, 2009

help ramani

Venkat Ramani is 40, an architect, employed with a Project Management firm.
During a routine health check up in the third week of December 2008, he was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (ALL) with Philadelphia positive (PH+) chromosome, a type of blood cancer.
He was immediately admitted to a hospital in Mumbai and has undergone 4 out of the total 8 rounds of chemotherapy.
He has already spent substantial funds – several lakhs of rupees – during the last three months of hospitalisation. It will take atleast six months for Ramani to resume work full-time.
Ramani is in complete remission and the consulting doctors have advised Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT). Unfortunately, his bone marrow type has not matched with either of his two siblings and we have initiated a global search for a matched unrelated donor (MUD).
The minimum estimated cost for this procedure ranges from Rs 1.5 crore to Rs 2 crore (US $400,000) depending on the chosen transplant centre. He has pooled in all his savings and liquidated his assets to generate funds to the tune of Rs 50 lakh (US $100,000). This is in addition to the amount already spent during the last over three months.
But since his resources are not going to cover the above-mentioned cost, this is an appeal for voluntary financial help.
Your contribution could go a long way in giving him a new lease of life.
Ramani has an eight year old daughter, Tanaya, who wishes to see her father fighting fit again.
NO AMOUNT IS TOO SMALL – EVERY PENNY COUNTS.
Ramani looks forward to the day when he is no longer considered just a cancer survivor, but an activist for cancer awareness. Help make his dreams come true.
For any queries please mail us at ramani.vi@gmail.com.

Send your doing's to ।cancer@gmail.com%22%3Eaware।cancer@gmail.com">।cancer@gmail.com">aware।cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 1:09 AM 0 comments

Thursday, January 29, 2009

India Online Childhood Cancer Survivor Network

Hello all,

How can you share you pain, agony, trauma. A social system always helpful. So, scoial networking is very popular nowdays.

Cancer need discussion. Poonam better understand the need.

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Dear Doctors,

It gives me the greatest pleasure to inform you that our young childhood cancer survivors and their friends are ready to launch the KCK India Online Childhood Cancer Survivor Network on Sunday Feb 15th in NEw Delhi, on the occasion of the 8th International Childhood Cancer Day.

I am proud to forward this message from them.

Please do encourage your Cancer Survivors to become founder members of the network.

Thank you

Warm regards
Poonam Bagai
President Cankids
+919811525745

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Dear Doc

A very Happy New Year from the gang of KidsCan Konnect (KCK).

KCK, the youth club of CanKids...KidsCan, is a group of teenage & young adults who have faced/are facing cancer( survivors/patients) and non-sufferers. it aims at reintegrating the cancer survivors back into the society.

KCK's growing bigger & better.
We are creating an India Online Childhood Cancer Survivor Network in it's name.
A SOCIAL NETWORKING WEBSITE where cancer survivors/patients and non-sufferers interact, express, share their life, pour their hearts out through features like Chatrooms, Discussion forums etc
here's how KCK looks like

http://bsquareinternational.com/kck/index.html

we urge you dear doctor to lend KCK your support in building up of this network.
U just need to encourage Cancer Survivors whom you might know, to become Founder members of this network.
Founder members....who will get the privilige of being among the select few already logged in, on the day of its launch. In addition to this, they also get to give in their ideas & improve the look of it..

We will be launching this network on the 15th February '09, The Interntional Childhood Cancer Day.

And we want maximum Cancer affected kids to be involved, benefit and help others like themselves.

So kindly help us out!!

Thanx
Megha Bahl Kapil Chawla
KCK Co-President KCK President (Survivor - Hodgkins Lymphoma)
9868844842

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 6:06 PM 0 comments

Monday, December 1, 2008

Acheivement for sincere work

CANKIDS IS PROUD AND HAPPY TO ANNOUNCE

Our President, Poonam Bagai, has been awarded the Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini Award 2008 for outstanding services, achievements and contributions in the field of social services on the occasion of the 91st Birth Anniversary of Late Smt. Indira Gandhi, on Wednesday, 19th Novemeber , 2008. The award was presented by His Excellency, Mr M..C Bhandare, the Governor of Orissa, at a ceremony organized by the All India National Unity Conference, at India International Centre in New Delhi.

A total of 57 awards were given to men and women from all over India, from different walks of life, in recognition of their effort to strengthen India's unity and economic development. THe Awards are organized by the All India National Unity Conference, which is working for people's movement for national unity and integration and decided by an Advisory Board of Ministers, high profile politicians, MPs, Judges and journalists. Poonam Bagai, a colon cancer survivor, is the founder President of CanKids…KidsCan, a family support group enabling children and their families faced with cancer, and the children's unit of Indian Cancer Society, Delhi branch. She is also the Deputy Chairperson of Pallium India, a charitable trust dedicated to providing quality palliative care in India, Joint Secretary Indian Cancer Society, Delhi Branch, Member Cancer Sahyog, an emotional support group of survivors and caregivers. . She supports Forum for Breast Cancer Protection and has acted in a film on Breast Self Examination. She is also alumni of American Cancer Society University. She loves children and is passionate about making a difference to the causes of Childhood Cancer and Palliative Care in India. Her motto also the motto of CanKids:

"Because I am Able…Because I Can" (In Hindi "Kyonki Hum Saksham Hain…Kyonki Hum Kar Sakte Hain" Details of the Award and some pics are attached.

Regards,

Joe Sahgal,

Director Admin, HR and Finance

email: joesahgal@cankidsindia.org

pH: +91 9810082188

Poonam Bagai, President,

Cankids...Kidscan

D 7/7 Vasant Vihar

New Delhi-110057

Mob: +91 9811525745

Off: +91 11-41663670/71/72

BECAUSE WE ARE ABLE…BECAUSE WE CAN

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posted by Cancer Awareness @ 1:51 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, November 11, 2008

Life after

Harmala is a cancer survivor and started CanSupport, a cancer support group in Delhi
It’s a few days to Deepavali. At the bright and airy day care centre run by CanSupport in Delhi, the energy is palpable. As the crowd of children, parents and volunteers watch, a magician in a cheerful green cape transports us all into a land where wonder and magic still exist. A mundane Monday morning, the diagnosis of cancer, hospital visits and medicines are forgotten for a magical half hour. Sharing in the joy is Harmala Gupta, president, CanSupport.

In 1986, while she had enrolled at McGill University, Montreal, for a PhD, Harmala was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s disease. Her son was just three. Apart from the numbing thought that cancer can kill, Harmala knew little about the disease. She knew even less about Hodgkin’s and still remembers wondering if it was something similar to Parkinson’s since they both sound “distinguished.” It was only later that she found out that it is a lymphoma that gets its name from Thomas Hodgkin, who first described it in 1832. It is also one of the first cancers known to have been cured by radiation and later, by chemotherapy.

Harmala has been there, facing the numbing reality of diagnosis, going through the various phases on an emotional roller coaster. That is why today, she can advise others diagnosed with cancer not to take it personally. Most often, after the shock wears off, is the ‘why me’? phase and then, guilt and blame and even a stage of bargaining. “That’s wrong,” she stresses of the self-reproach and blame, “It leads nowhere and adds to the existing trauma. Come to immediate acceptance, pick up as much information on the problem as you can and help yourself. This is where we often fail.”

She even went through denial and wondering if her problem was tuberculosis. That’s when her practical doctor helped her snap out of the delusion. “Stop clutching at straws. I need your help in this fight,” the doctor said. That transformed Harmala from feeling victimised to knowing she was empowered.

Her doctor also helped her focus on the fight with a diet to follow and with advice but in spite of it all, Harmala recalls one chilling panic attack she suffered that began with a pain in her chest. “I thought I was dying, and was rushed to emergency.” There, another doctor identified the problem as a panic attack, reminded her to breathe easy and saw her through. “My doctors assured me that nothing is too small to discuss,” she recalls with gratitude.

When she was better, Harmala returned to India. The reality here hit her hard. This, when she went to some of the best doctors in the country. One doctor dismissed the Canadian doctor’s diagnosis. Another did not bother to see her earlier liver function records and pronounced the cancer had spread to her liver. “It just added to my trauma,” she remembers.

Harmala knew she had to bring to cancer patients in India the support structure that had seen her through in Canada. In 1991, she began Cancer Sahyog, a voluntary organisation of cancer survivors and caregivers offering emotional and other help to people living with cancer.

From that experience was born CanSupport, a home care project that got an impetus from Ruth Wooldridge, a nurse from the UK who had started a hospice in Kenya. The day care programme, where the magician left the children agape, began later, on August 1, 2003. The message the team carries is essentially: don’t let the flame die out. It may be flickering today, but we are all there to fight the wind that threatens to blow it out.

Benita Sen

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 10:00 AM 1 comments

Monday, September 15, 2008

A 'leaf' of HISTORY...

Health enemy numero uno!

Benita Sen

Tobacco has been smoked or chewed for thousands of years. And yet, the knowledge of the huge health dangers from this plant is rather recent, laments Benita Sen

As an amateur gardener, one is often looking for ‘green’ or organic ways to keep the garden pest-free. Perhaps the most lasting home remedies for pests is tobacco water. Most stubborn invaders balk at the treatment.

That is one indication of the damage tobacco can wreak. Little wonder, then, that two philanthropists got together to fight the use of tobacco across the world. On 23 July 2008, Michael Bloomberg and Bill Gates pledged $500 million “to help governments in developing countries” reduce the use of tobacco.

New knowledge

As Bill Gates pointed out about his involvement with the scheme, “Tobacco-caused diseases have emerged as one of the greatest health challenges facing developing countries.”

To many of us, the operative words there are “have emerged.” This knowledge is barely a couple of generations young. Tobacco has been smoked or chewed for thousands of years. And yet, the knowledge of the huge health dangers from this plant is rather recent. Millions of people in ours and several other countries, in the 40+ bracket, took for granted the notion, perpetrated by films, advertisements and other media, that smoking is hip and happening.

If you grew up goggle-eyed as Clark Gable sauntered across the scene, the cigar was not far from your consciousness. If you tramped to movie halls to catch Hindi films, you imitated icons like Dev Anand and hummed his Hum Dono song, har fikar ko dhoonye mein udata chala gaya as a yardstick of nonchalance.
The more bindaas would opt for a beedi. Our generation may not have imagined we’d live to see a film titled No Smoking. We did not know that tobacco could be that harmful. Not till we were adults. Not because science hadn’t caught on, but because the news had not been disseminated as much as it has been in the next few decades.

Long history

The realisation of what imbibing tobacco can do, is almost a century old. In 1911, Dr Isaac Adler (1849 – 1918) raised the first suspicion that tobacco was linked to lung cancer.

That inkling may be as pathbreaking as Dr Ronald Ross’ 1897 comprehension of a link between mosquitoes and malaria. August 20, the day of Ross’ realisation, is earmarked as World Mosquito Day. May 31 is earmarked as World No Tobacco Day but given the dimensions of the problem, perhaps tobacco could have more days earmarked to drawing attention to its dangers.

Just three years after Adler, a concerned Thomas Alva Edison wrote to Henry Ford expressing his fear that cigarettes are dangerous to brain cells, although he noted that the danger "comes principally from the burning paper wrapper” which produces acrolein, a toxic, instable aldehyde that is a known lung irritant and a suspected carcinogen in humans. “Unlike most narcotics,” warned Edison, who did not employ smokers, “this degeneration (of brain cells) is permanent and uncontrollable.”

One of the most convincing findings came in the middle of the last century. In 1950 Dr Morton Levin of the Department of Epidemiology noted in a study what many before him had suspected: tobacco was linked to lung cancer.

Newer findings

But now that tobacco is recognized as a health enemy, it is crawling camouflaged into products you and I may not suspect as dangers. Prabha Chandra and Uzma Mulla of NIMHANS pointed out in their 2007 report, ‘Areca Nut: The hidden Indian ‘gateway’ to future tobacco use and oral cancers among youth’ (Indian Journal of Medical Sciences vol 61 issue 6), Indian youth are faced with a new enemy their parents were not up against: camouflaged deadlies like areca nut and tobacco in most brands of pan masala.

What is alarming is that the perceived respectability of pan masala makes it a deadly gender equalizer: although fewer Indian women smoke, both men and women consume pan masala with equal fervour. The gender inequity does not stop there. According to the Bloomberg Foundation, “On average, male beedi smokers lose about 6 years of life, (while) female beedi smokers lose about 8 years of life.”

The buck stops here

Does all this knowledge mean we are better armed to fight the deadly leaf? Yes and no. Studies have found that most developed countries reported a fall in the sale of cigarettes among those with more education. Logical, since self-preservation runs strong in all forms of life.

But that’s where the truism ends for us. This is the opposite in India. Even the World Bank notes in Economics of Tobacco in India, “As the education increases, (people) in urban and rural households with a higher education smoke more cigarettes compared to lower educated households.”

The answer to this perplexing trend could lie in the newly-found purchasing power that makes one throw caution to the winds. Perhaps these consumers could be reminded of the findings shared by the Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, “Tobacco use is deadly.” In any form. Whether as cigarettes, beedis, gutkha or even the innocuous pan masala. Period. We cannot afford to lose 2,200 Indians every day because of a tobacco-related disease.

Courtesy: Deccan Herald

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Cancer Awareness @ 11:00 PM 2 comments

Sunday, August 10, 2008

Indian children with cancer nominated at Australian Children’s film festival

CANKIDS.. .KIDSCAN
enabling children and families faced with cancer

(A unit of Indian Cancer Society, Delhi Branch)

D7/7, Vasant Vihar, New Delhi 110057, INDIA

Ph : (91) 11 41663670/1/2 Mobile: (91) 9953591578

e-mail: poonambagai@cankidsindia.org Web: www.cankidsindia.org

“Fight for Life” – a film made by Indian children with cancer nominated at Australian Children’s film festival – only Indian entry to be nominated

It was a long awaited dream for UK based young professionals freelancing in film-making and design - Mantavya (Indian) and Daria (Russian) that was made possible by the Philip Russell Travel Scholarship from Kingston University London and the Seagate Creative Fund. They had one desire in their hearts, that was to give something back to the communities from where they have come. With this in mind they embarked on a journey that would test their existence as creative individuals and passionate human beings. They wanted to share their knowledge and experience with children who might not get a chance to do so.

Their first stop was New Delhi in India. Mantavya and Daria visited the children of Cankids Kidscan – a unit of Indian Cancer society of India. Their plan was to empower these children with the techniques and abilities to film and create stunning designs for film. The goal was to help these children embrace film and design techniques that would not only better their skills but also benefit them in the future.

The duo worked with a group of 12 children and parents for two weeks, teaching them everything from scratch. The main aim for the children in the project was to come up with an idea for a short film, write a script, shoot the film, edit it, design the posters for the film and then have a grand premier for everybody to see.

The children’s film ‘Fight for Life’ is based on a true story, and is about facing realities with cancer. Scripted by the children themselves, the story follows Sonu, a child with cancer whose mother has left him due to the pressures of poverty, and Sonam, a woman, whose son did not survive the disease. The children were so excited about the film and having their roles of directors and actors that they were willing to shoot twenty four hours a day without stopping. Some of the children were finishing off their home work and visits to their doctors early just so that they could put in an extra hour of creating magic on film. Fight for Life premiered in Delhi in Feb 08.

Soon after, Mantavya and Daria travelled to a boarding school in Yekaterinburg (Russia) to teach visually impaired children film making. Here too the the project lasted fifteen days. Children between the ages of twelve and sixteen were put incharge of devising an idea for a short film and then shooting it all by themselves. The children came up with a film titled ‘Blind Love’ which follows a ‘strange’ girl Sonya as she finds herself in midst of a love triangle and tries to make sense of where her heart truly lies.

And now, both sets of children are hugely excited as both the films ‘Blind Love’ and ‘Fight for Life’ have been nominated for the Auburn International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults in Australia and now will compete for a prize in September 2008.

Other than teaching these children film making and design in both the countries Mantavya and Daria were also documenting this process. In India they met Uday, a talented twelve year old boy suffering from osteosarcoma of the leg. His wish was to become the designer of the film. Daria took him under her wing and taught him graphic design within two weeks, so that he could finally make the film poster for the day of the premier. The premier came swiftly and film was finally released. Uday’s mother on seeing his poster was so proud of him that she burst into tears.

At the moment Mantavya and Daria are working on their documentary titled ‘What Colour is Black’ about their experiences of working with children in both the countries. The documentary is in its final stage of post production and the DVDs with all extras including the children’s films will be available soon from their website www.thingamagic.org. The money collected from the DVD sales will be donated to Cankids...Kidscan and the boarding school in Russia. The trailer will be available on the Thingamagic wesbite by the end of August 2008.

“This trip has changed us. We found a new beginning in ourselves and the children we worked with. We also learnt a lot from these children who are challenging themselves every day with their own problems and fears. Now we are planning to continue with such trips and are constantly looking for opportunities where we can share our knowledge and experiences while helping people to believe in themselves and their future regardless of their situations.”

You are cordially invited to attend. For details contact Poonam Bagai, President, Cankids at 9811525745, or Abhijit Roy, Program Officer at 9971841305.

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 9:03 PM 0 comments

CANKIDS ANNOUNCES कैंसर SCHOLARSHIP

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 9:00 PM 0 comments

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 8:56 PM 0 comments

Sunday, June 8, 2008

Cankids Scholarship Program

CANKIDS.. .KIDSCAN
enabling children and families faced with cancer
(A unit of Indian Cancer Society, Delhi Branch)
D7/7 (Basement) Vasant Vihar, New Delhi 110057, INDIA
Ph : (91) 11 41663670/1/2 Mobile: (91) 9811525745
e-mail: poonambagai@cankidsindia.org Web: www.cankidsindia.org

Dear Sir/ Madam,

We are writing to you to request your help with our Cankids Scholarship Program for children with cancer who either have survived the disease or are undergoing treatment, with the aim to recognize and appreciate their indomitable courage and spirit and also to motivate and encourage those children who have fought cancer and emerged as winners.

You may be aware that CANKIDS….KIDSCAN is a family support group for children with cancer and their families in India, providing a full range of support services from moment of diagnosis, through treatment and after, into survivorship, palliation or bereavement.

Scholarships are being awarded in five categories,

a. Cankids…KidsCan Scholarship for Academic Excellence: junior level (class 1 to 6),
b. Cankids…KidsCan Scholarship for Academic Excellence: senior level (class 7 to 12),
c. K.K. Mehta Cankids Scholarship for Excellence in Sports
d. Prem Nath Bagai Cankids Scholarship for Creative Arts/ Music
e. Kalavati Shanta Anup Kumar for Creative Writing and Authorship

The Scholarships are a cash award for Rs 7500/ and a trophy.

Children who have survived cancer or those undergoing treatment, are invited to fill in the forms attached and submit them with the required documents (as listed for the different categories). Last date for submitting the forms will be 30th June.

A panel of eminent educationists will form part of the process of selection and a formal award ceremony will be organized to present the scholarships. The scholarships will be announced on 15th of August 08 in Delhi.

We would like to request your support in encouraging children who you think may be worthy of these awards to apply.

We would appreciate if you could spend little bit of your valuable time by referring deserving children for the scholarships and join us in appreciating and honoring children with cancer
I am attaching the poster and the scholarship registration form. We would request you to put up the poster in your clinic/hospital, encourage children you believe are deserving and could compete for the scholarship to apply. If you could give us their names and contacts. we would be happy to contact themselves ourselves.

Thanking you

--
Poonam Bagai, President, Cankids...Kidscan
D 7/7 Vasant Vihar New Delhi-110057
Mob: +91 9811525745 Off: +91 11-41663670/71/72

BECAUSE WE ARE ABLE…BECAUSE WE CAN

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

Labels: कैंसर

posted by Bhavya @ 10:20 PM 0 comments

Thursday, May 22, 2008

Rohit's Life & WE..

It always felt you happy that things happen by your will, last time when kiwi was bedridden, I was really upset. She was not with us...she gets fund, operated, but the efforts are failed.

This time I am more positive. Rohit's life is now a issue for few concern minds. I feel happy and publish the emails, coming one by one in my email box...

From Poonam Bagai to all.... ON MAY22, 4:59 pm

Gosh and all. Bhavya, have had any no of emails in response to your appeal to all. and have sent you details as well an hour ago. SHal, have met the boy and his grandfather today, and we are assisting

Cheers

From Poonam Bagai to all.... ON MAY22, 4:10 pm

Met Nanaji, the child was treated at Jaipur Govt hospital for ALL since June 2007. He relapsed while on treatment in APril this year (not a good sign and lowers prognosis significantly) and was refeferred to the "superior" hospital AIIMS for further treatment.

He came to AIIMS Pediatrics Dr Rachna Seth, who then referred him to IRCH for possibility of BMT. They saw Dr Bakshi and Dr Lalit. Unfortunateley since the child has no siblings and no possibility of having one either, a BMT is completely ruled out.

They will now go back to Dr Rachna at AIIMS Pediatrics for the Saturday OPD, where he is likely to commence chemo treatment once again. I have asked for an estimate. I will keep you posted.

Cheers

From Benita to all.... ON MAY21

thanks a ton, poonam. if there's anything i can do, please let me know. best, benita

From Bhavya to all.... ON MAY21

Sorry, I was busy in some work in office....Its nice to hear that u
talked rohit's nanaji...

From Poonam to all.... ON MAY21

Hey, I was trying to call Bhavya. He is not picking up the phone. I called and spoke to Nanaji of Rohit. He will meet me at AIIMS -IRCh tomorrow. We will do all we can. Bhavya I'll keep you posted.

PoonAM

From Benita to Poonam Bagai.... ON MAY21

Poonam, Here is a mail from Bhavya.
The first person I thought of, was you.
Thanks and best, Benita

From Shalini C Vallabhan to All.... ON MAY21

Bhavya, Poonam Bagai might have resources for Rohit.

Poonam, could someone from CanKids reach out to Bhavya to see what support
can be provided? Thanks! Shalini

________________________

Shalini C. Vallabhan, PhD
Strategic Director, Asia Programs
International Affairs Department
American Cancer Society
588 Broadway, Suite 504
New York, NY 10012

phone) +1-212-941-5745 ext 19
cell) +1-202-210-4312
fax) +1-212-941-5684
email) svallabhan@cancer.org
skype) shalini.vallabhan

From Dr.Rakesh Gupta to Bhavya.... ON MAY21

Hi Bhavya,

Please consider getting in touch with Dr. Lalit Kumar, Prof. of Medical Oncology at AIIMS to know the prognosis in this case- his likelihood of responding to the proposed therapy and an expected average survival.

he can be helped at Jaipur. My younger brother, Dr. Rahul Gupta is a medical oncologist, contemporary to Dr. Lalit at AIIMS. He works at SDM Hospital. He can be reached through his cell- 91-98283 76349. In viiew of his being busy mostly, please advise to seek his convenient time for another opinion.

With best wishes,

Rakesh
-------------------------------------------
Dr. Rakesh Gupta, MS, FAIS,
Consultant (India),
Cancer Control Strategies- Workplaces,
American Cancer Society,
B- 113, 10 B Scheme, Gopalpura Byepass,
Jaipur. Pin 302 018. India.
T & F). 91-141-2763135;
Mobile- 91-93516 24313
skype) dr.Rakeshgupta

From Bhavya to All.... ON MAY20

Hello All,

This time we have to save life for a child of 5 years old Rohit. He is
victim of Blood cancer. Living in Ajmer, Rajasthan. He need urgent
attention, in terms of bone marrow transplantation and the expenses(8
lakh indian rupees).

Very soon I provide you all contact details of him....

www.awarecancer.blogspot.com

From Bhavya to all.... ON MAY20

But is anyone is trying for large funds, needed for Rohit's BMT. If anyone take press help..he can get funds...

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 7:27 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

For a future...

Hello All,

This time the childness of a 5 year old boy is on the edge of death. He is a patient of Blood Cancer. And brought to AIIMS for treatment.

We have a chance to save life friends..

He is in delhi now...Rohit, S/o of Omprakash, Address- Jaleeya, Second Panchayat Samiti, Masuda, Distt Ajmer, Rajasthan.

Contact no. 09983038471

Hope We help this child to see future with us...

Aware Cancer
Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

posted by Bhavya @ 9:29 PM 0 comments

Tuesday, April 29, 2008

DETECT RETINOBLASTOMA EARLY

http://www.livemint.com/2007/05/21234645/Looking-ahead.html

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TUESDAY, APRIL 29, 2008 11:27 AM IST e-paper TODAY'S NEWSPAPER mint CODE Posted: Mon, May 21 2007. 11:53 PM IST
Business of Life

Benita Sen

Looking aheadRetinoblastoma, a cancer of the eye, can cause blindness, even death, if left untreated. However, it is fairly easy to spot the condition’s telltale symptomsBenita Sen font size
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You’ve heard of blood cancer, cancer of the lungs, mouth, colon, cervix and breast. But cancer of the eyes? If you ask people at random, most of them would be incredulous that cancer can strike the eyes. Retinoblastoma affects a large number of children between the ages of one and five.
Till a few decades ago, this rare cancer that attacks the retina was considered fatal. Of late, however, early detection and medical and technological advances have turned that tide. Today, nine of 10 child patients can be cured in ‘advanced’ countries. In Europe, for instance, the five-year survival rate in children suffering from retinoblastoma went up from 85% in the 1970s to 90% in the 1980s and stood at 91% in the 1990s even while the incidence of retinoblastoma for the same period fell from 3.6 per million in the 1970s to 3.1 per million in the 1990s (Source:The Cancer Atlas published by the American Cancer Society).
Ocular oncology is a relatively new field of ophthalmology, and that perhaps explains to some extent why in India ocular oncologists see more of advanced retinoblastoma. An alarming number of general practitioners and even general ophthalmologists are not too knowledgeable about it. Says Dr Santosh Honavar, ocular oncologist at the L.V. Prasad Eye Institute, Hyderabad: “Delayed diagnosis of retinoblastoma is a problem unique to the developing world, and a problem that historically has poor prognosis.”
If detected early, the spread of cancer can be arrested, salvaging the eye, optimizing residual vision and, in extreme cases, saving a life. About 95% of children with retinoblastoma can be saved and vision kept useful in about 85% if the tumour is detected before the cancer destroys vital parts of the eye or spreads to other parts of the body, says Honavar.
Sadly, we still lose children to cancer that begins in the eye. In India, adds Honavar, cancer is among the leading causes of death among children below 14. Retinoblastoma and other eye cancers account for about 20-30% of all cancers; of these, about 30% cases are in children. In every 10 cases of retinoblastoma in children in India, about seven are unilateral or in one eye. While the disease can affect both eyes, cases where one eye is affected are generally detected by the time the children are about two or three years old. Those with both eyes affected are diagnosed between one and two years and seldom after they turn five.
An attentive adult, whether a member of the family, a doctor or a teacher, can save a child’s life. Take, for instance, the case of New Delhi’s Krish, who completed a year this March. He was about two months old when his parents took him to a paediatrician for diarrhoea.
One look at his eyes which could not coordinate, and the doctor suspected trouble. A specialist diagnosed retinoblastoma in both eyes. Krish was completely blind, a fact that his parents had not suspected since they did not know the symptoms. Treated for over 10 months, Krish has got back 50% vision in one eye and 20% in the other. He awaits a cataract surgery in June, after which he should be able to see better.
One of the surest indicators of retinoblastoma is to look at a photograph taken with a flash. Many parents have missed the healthy red glint in the child’s eye and consulted the doctor reporting a white reflex, only to confirm retinoblastoma. While most children with retinoblastoma appear like any other, attentive parents should watch out for the cat’s eye or a pupil that looks white and reflects light in what is called the cat’s eye reflex. Some children have a squint or persistent redness that comes with the cornea being clouded over, while some may have problems with their vision, even though they do not complain of pain in most cases. It may be difficult for the parents to detect poor vision in one eye, so check if the child resents closure of one eye at random. “This simple test can be done at home while the child is at play or watching television,” suggests Honavar. Some mothers suspect something wrong when they observe the eye bulge or move unnaturally.
What goes wrong and where?
As with some other cancers, retinoblastoma can be caused by the faulty Rb gene, which makes children more prone to bilateral retinoblastoma (affecting both eyes). That is why children born into a family with a history of retinoblastoma ought to be screened regularly till they are five years old. About one out of three cases are genetic, but several DNA mutations develop later in life. The retinoblastomas that are not inherited generally affect one eye. There is no conclusive evidence about what causes retinoblastoma. Nor is there any proven way of preventing retinoblastoma except by prenatal genetic diagnosis, which is recommended when there is a family history of the disease. So, till further research provides any conclusive answers, technically speaking, any child can get retinoblastoma even though statistics say that about one in 15,000 to one in 18,000 live births are diagnosed with it.
Although ocular oncologists work towards a day when they can restore complete vision and save the lives of every child, sometimes the treatment has to be guided by the fact that it is most important to stop the spread of cancer, even if vision cannot be preserved.
If the eye is removed, new techniques ensure implantation of a life-like prosthetic eye identical to the other eye that can even move on volition.
Retinoblastoma, when completely cured, does not often recur later in life. Nor does the treatment leave any significant long-term side effects. Which means, in a couple of years from now, Krish will be packing his books for school.
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posted by BENITA SEN @ 12:13 PM 0 comments

PALLIATIVE CARE

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April 29, 2008
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The pain of Roshanara
By Benita Sen

Cancer patient Roshanara’s morphine tablets keep her relatively pain-free. Morphine is part of palliative care, which allows terminally ill patients to live a life of dignity, free of pain. Why, then, is it so scarce in India?

All we have is an address from the hospital records. As we scour the bylanes of the approximate locality in Lucknow, that proves insufficient. Up and down the lanes we wind looking for the home of a fruit seller. And then, just when we are about to give up the search, one young man remembers a woman in pain. He leads us to the door of Roshanara.

The door opens. A woman sits up in bed. “Doctor saab! It’s you!” she exclaims, her pain almost forgotten for a moment. “I heard your voice outside and couldn’t believe it was you,” she says as Doctor Shakeel, in charge of the palliative care unit of the King George Medical University Hospital, checks the swelling on her foot.

The pain in the blue-green painted room is palpable. Not just the physical pain of Roshanara, but the pain of her two daughters who see her suffer and wait to give her the next dose of the white pill that will relieve some of the suffering.

Roshanara has spreading bilateral breast cancer. She was first diagnosed with cancer about 14 years ago and responded to treatment. But she had a relapse recently and this time, the pain has been so bad, it has kept her bedridden.

She doesn’t know what the white pills by her bedside are, but she does know that these tablets have brought her immense relief. “That’s morphine,” Dr Shakeel says. Roshanara takes one every 12 hours.

“Before they started me on these tablets, I would shriek in pain,” she recalls. “Her cries could be heard down the gully,” remembers her daughter.

Morphine use in India

Morphine looks innocuous. But the issues behind it are not. Roshanara does not understand the chemistry of morphine, an opiate analgesic extracted from dried poppy pods and stems, first isolated in Germany in 1804. Its extraction and purification was patented by Hungarian chemist Janos Kabay.

As a pain killer, morphine does not cause any alarming side effects nor is it addictive, a fact that many doctors do not know, say activists working in palliative care. “There is the fear of misuse and the morphine falling into wrong hands (read, the drug mafia) but for that, policing needs to be stringent,” points out one activist.

The World Heath Organisation Collaborating Center for Policy and Communications in Cancer Care notes that approximately one million people experience cancer pain in India, every year. ‘Unrelieved pain not only affects the patient, but also the family and the community,’ it says. It also accepts that ‘morphine is an essential drug for cancer pain management’, as a safe and effective treatment for severe pain. Ironically, the study notes that ‘India supplies much of the opium to make morphine for increasing use in the rest of the world, but it produces very little for domestic use due to lack of demand.’

Demand from the powers that be, perhaps, not the end-user writhing in pain. India gets barely six per cent of the world’s legal morphine. Palliative care is needed not just by cancer patients but by those with several other chronic illnesses including AIDS. Morphine is also given to patients recovering from heart surgery. That translates to over two million patients suffering avoidable pain when the answer can be the cheap, effective morphine. The United States’ 2007 International Narcotics Control Strategy believes 20-30 per cent of India’s opium crop is diverted to the grey market.

The Narcotic and Psychotropic Substances Act of 1985 raised the stringency bar. Anyone found misusing morphine could be put behind bars. Every Indian state has its own version of the Act. As a result, between 1985 and 1997, there was a 97 per cent fall in the use of morphine. From 573 kg, it plummeted to 18 kg.

“Two or three generations of doctors have not used morphine,” points out Poonam Bagai, a cancer survivor, founder of CanKids…Kids Can, and the vice chairman of Pallium India.

What of the side-effects?

In a presentation during a recent workshop on ‘Addressing pain and palliative care through improved cancer pain policy’, in Lucknow, Dr Sushma Bhatnagar of Dr B R Ambedkar Institute-Rotary Cancer Hospital (IRCH) Delhi, made the point that “allergy and intolerance are rare”. The landmark Boston Collaborative Drug Surveillance Project, 1980 (by J Porter and H Jick) found that of about 11,882 patients who received opiods, only four became addicted and ‘only one of these cases seemed significant’. The report notes: ‘A patient’s need for escalating dose of a narcotic, due to a cancer or other chronic illness, is most often due to progression of the disease rather than addiction. Patients with stable disease can be maintained on the same dose for extremely long periods of time.’

Why suffer needless pain?

At a very basic level, palliative care addresses any pain. “Not many doctors, nurses, paramedics and other professionals involved in health care understand that,” says cancer activist Samiran Das of the Saktipada Das Memorial Foundation who is trying to offer pain relief as part of palliative care at a clinic in the Sunderbans, West Bengal.

The availability of pain killers for a routine headache or a gripe in the stomach could be taken as the rock bottom of the palliative care ladder. This perspective also helps one empathise with the need for pain relief – as an important part of palliative care -- for people with serious, life-threatening diseases.

Although the first National Cancer Control Programme (NCCP) was initiated in 1975, it was only in 1984 that it recognised pain relief as a basic service. The modern medical concept of palliative care was introduced in India only in the mid-1980s. While the government has had a role to play, a good amount of the infrastructure and care that is in place is due to the efforts of individuals, NGOs and international players, including the World Health Organisation.

In the 1970s, the medical community had to think beyond aspirin. Patients in excruciating pain were given pure opium dissolved in tea. This was effective but impractical, since the opium had to be collected frequently from the authorities. Oral morphine entered the scene around 1986. The first pain clinics opened in the Regional Cancer Centre, Trivandrum, and at Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, Bangalore, and they dispensed oral morphine free of charge for the first time. The first hospice, Shanti Avedna, started in Mumbai in 1986.

Today, morphine is available for pain relief, but the process is cumbersome and time consuming. Even a hospital running a palliative care centre needs to take licences from about five departments. As K M Mishra of the Cancer Aid Society found when he tried to get 300 tablets for Sanjay Gandhi PGI, this can mean that by the time the morphine arrives, the permit has expired. Dr L Jaichand Singh, a professor at Imphal’s Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) faced something similar when he ordered 10,000 morphine tablets that should have helped cancer patients be free of pain for about six months. By the time the licences were through, the company ran out of stock.

For patients like Roshanara, too, the pills are not easily available and her husband has to go far to get her doses. Dr M R Rajagopal, the chairman of Pallium India and widely acknowledged as the father of palliative care in India, says that oral morphine reaches less than one per cent of the needy.

A drop in the ocean

Even today, 21 years after it was first introduced in the country, palliative care has barely pushed beyond the metros to some state capitals and larger cities. In 2005, the Department of Health and Family Welfare of the Government of India appointed a task force of 15 experts to assist and advise in the framing of the National Cancer Control Programme for the next five-year plan. Palliative care was one of the six features looked into.

Palliative care includes not just the patient but patient support and support of the family, for whom care-giving and watching a near one in unbearable pain is traumatic. It is about reversing crippling pain and giving the patient the opportunity to return even to a near-normal, self-reliant and economically viable life.

On April 28, 2007, the activist group Pallium India wrote to Health Minister Anbumani Ramadoss that although the budget for the National Cancer Control Programme was likely to be raised to Rs 2500 crore, the focus was on awareness and early detection. There was no separate allocation for palliative care although the Palliative Care Task Force had recommended a budget of Rs 50 crore to develop palliative facilities at various levels, besides training medical professionals.

Pallium India feared that not much attention and resources would be given to palliative care. They were taken aback to learn from the secretary of health that it was hoped that early detection would make palliative care redundant in 10 years. Scientifically, this is a wish that is yet to be proved true even in the most medically advanced nations. As Pallium India’s letter had pointed out, the world statistics for palliative care is one out of every two cancer patients.

Not allotting sufficient resources to palliative care, says Dr Rajagopal, means the medical establishment “will be free to continue expensive, high-tech treatment, even when futile, as most of them do now”.

In July 2007, the Supreme Court admitted a public interest litigation by the Indian Association of Palliative Care (IAPC) demanding “improved access to palliative care for those who need it in the country”, and arguing for the right to life and death with dignity.

IAPC requested the Supreme Court to direct both central and state governments to develop a palliative care policy.

Teaching palliative care

The only hope for patients like Roshanara is concerted effort at all levels. “It is easy to blame the red tape and the government, but the medical and nursing professions at large, have not accepted palliative care as an essential part of health care,” says Dr Rajagopal. Palliative care needs to be included in undergraduate medical and nursing curricula; it has been referred to as the forgotten chapter in medical education.

Young medics like Dr Shakeel, who was selected for the Lucknow Palliative Care Centre, need to be exposed to palliative care. When he was asked to go to Kochi to train, he wondered what he’d learn in six weeks that he didn’t know from medical school. He came back transformed.

“I learnt to communicate with patients, to break the news of the diagnosis, to prescribe analgesics and morphine and adjuvants.” The stress, he believes, is still on curative rather than palliative, but few realise that the two can go hand in hand.

The concept of palliative care is going from the metros to smaller cities and villages, but will the morphine get there?

(Benita Sen is a journalist and author)

InfoChange News & Features, April 2008

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Labels: Cancer Aid Society, Dr MR Rajagopalan, morphine, Palliative Care, Palliative Care Lucknow, Roshanara

posted by BENITA SEN @ 11:58 AM 1 comments

Friday, January 25, 2008

Ketan's Writings on Cancer

Hi All,

Pasted are series of articles on cancer and people dealing with them that I have written and were published in Times Of India

Regards

Ketan

***********

HOPE FLOATS

When They Say You’re Going To Die

What goes on inside the minds of people with terminal illnesses. Ketan Tanna goes that side

On Thursdays, 37-year-old Ankita Anil Gurav used to wake up at five in the morning. She had to be ahead in the queue for tokens issued by the outpatient department of the Tata Memorial Hospital in central Mumbai. The token enabled her only son, 12-year-old Aniket to get his dose of chemotherapy. Only 20 tokens were given every day and they were exhausted by 7:30 am, minutes after the counter opens.

Life had been tough for Ankita but some choices are easy to make. The Gurav family sold almost all its possessions for the treatment of the boy and were ready to sell the oneroom home if necessary. But they did not curse their fate. “We don’t feel angry with god. We know that our son has an uncertain span of life. God has given us life. He has his plans for us,” said Aniket’s father, Anil Gurav who gave up his job as a diamond polisher to spend more time with his ailing son.

A few weeks ago, the family had gathered at the Make A Wish Foundation to celebrate a simple moment of joy. The Foundation had gifted Aniket a 5-in-1 music system. The boy, with a cloth tied over his mouth to avoid infection, tinkered with his new gift, forgetting the intense pain that had impaired his sense of sight and speech. “I want to be a pilot once I grow up,” he said feebly. On January 2, Aniket died.

Death terrifies us all. But there are many who live with it as an immediate prospect. How do they deal with it? How do children, especially, deal with it?

Children are aware of the concept of death but somehow they isolate themselves from the fate and very often make deep future plans. That’s why, with great effort, seven-year-old Arjun Jalandhar Naik folds his fingers to make an imaginary pistol. Because of surgeries, Arjun can barely speak. “I want to be an inspector,” he mumbles. It has been four months since Arjun and his father have been uprooted from their home in Vasco, Goa to the sterile rooms of the Tata Memorial Hospital. “I can’t dictate terms to god. What he has planned for us has to have a meaning. It is important that we go through what he has planned,” says the boy’s father Jalandhar Naik. Arjun’s grandmother calls from Vasco and the kid asks his grandmother how she is in Konkani and reassures her that he is fine. His father begins to cry.

In the palliative care department of the hospital, scores of cancer patients await their turn with crumbled bits of paper and files. Vasant Kadam, who says he is 50, though his file says he is 45, can barely speak. He has throat cancer and every time he tries to speak, there is wheezing sound. A pipe is attached to a hole made in his throat. Kadam has to press a small button on the tube so that he can speak properly. “I know that I am very ill. But I am not blaming god. I am just asking him to give me some time so that I can see my daughters settled.”

The left eye of 62-year old Kabir was burnt during radiation and what is left of it is one deep hollow socket. The right eye just about functions. Endless rounds of treatment since 1995, when his eyeballs started getting enlarged, saw him down painkillers on a regular basis only to discover that the medicines were causing more damage. Radiation and chemotherapy followed. Kabir says he is not disheartened. “I try to live a normal life. The more you think of your difficulties, the more you are bound to feel miserable. All I can say to those who do not have illnessse or have been given disease free bodies is please don’t complicate your lives over trivial issues,” he says, smiling.

The head of Tata Palliative Care department Dr M A Muckaden says that the common thread that runs through most of the patients is their ability to meet life head on despite having a limited lifespan. “I’m amazed at how they cope with their life when I see other human beings crumble at small problems,” she says. TNN

THE PILOT WHO FLEW AWAY: Twelve-year-old Aniket, who had dreamt of flying, passed away on January 2

***********************

Outstation cancer patients can put up here for free

Ketan class Tanna meets the man who has put his spare flat to good use.

Mumbai: Cancer is a cruel and expensive disease. It drains you physically and exhausts you financially. And for the thousands of families who travel to Mumbai for treatment, one of the most challenging hurdles is to find a cheap and safe place to stay while the patient is being treated. Which is why a threebedroom flat in Kandivli is like an answer to a prayer.

A few years ago, businessman Suresh Agarwal, 47, realised that accommodation for outstation families was a crying need. For the last two years, his spare flat in Kandivli’s Lokhandwala area has been hosting cancer patients and their relatives who have not been able to get accommodation at Tata Memorial Hospital or Hinduja Hospital.

On an average, four patients are allowed to stay in the flat for up to three months. The flat is furnished and has a proper kitchen where the patients or their family members can cook as well.The lodging is free, and all that is needed is a letter from the doctor treating the patient. So far, 45 patients have used this generous facility.

It’s not just free boarding that Agarwal provides. Last week, he organised a musical show called Amit Kumar Night that raised Rs 35 lakh for Hinduja Hospital. Around two years ago, another musical event called the Vinod Rathod Night had raised Rs 15 lakh for the hospital.

Agarwal, who runs a plastic factory in Daman, knows too well the havoc cancer can cause to family life. His younger brother Sushil, now 45, was diagnosed with lung cancer in 1987. His brother-in-law, too, developed lung cancer in 1992 and later the wife of his brother-in-law was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

What followed were almost daily visits to Hinduja where he became friends with the doctors and the management of the hospital. Even after his brother and relatives recovered, Agarwal continued to visit the hospital. On one such round, he noticed a frail person sobbing in the waiting area. He found out that the man’s treatment had been stopped midway as he was unable to pay.

It was then that Agarwal decided that he had to do something. After consulting the management, Agarwal decided to create a corpus so that each time there was a needy patient, the corpus could be used. It has helped many patients.

The Agarwal family has its roots in Assam. Soon after Sushil was treated successfully, they started getting requests for help from cancer patients from that state. “An empty flat near my home spurred me into offering it free to needy cancer patients,’’ says Agarwal.

Dr Asha Kapadia, head of the oncology department at Hinduja Hospital, says, “I wish we had more people like him.’’ Suresh Agarwal can be contacted on 98200 65184.

ketan.tanna@timesgroup.com

WARM WELCOME: More than 40 patients have so far used the accommodation facility offered by Suresh Agarwal

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She helps them keep pain at bay

Ketan Tanna I TNN

Life is what one makes of it. Knocked by life’s hard lessons, some turn cynical and others simply crumble. Bandra resident Usha Nagpal, 68, had a good life with a caring husband, three children and four grand children. She assisted her financier husband till 2000, when he had a heart attack and decided to wind up the firm. After nursing her husband back to life, Usha found herself with plenty of time on her hands. Her children were grown and leading their own lives.

An opportunity to do something useful presented itself in 2004, when a friend told her that the Tata Memorial Hospital was looking for people to train as volunteers for palliative care, which is pain treatment administered to patients in the terminal stages whose cancer is no longer responsive to curative treatment. Usha enrolled.

But life had more complicated plans for her. Two days into the course in what seemed like an ironic stroke of fate, her husband Narain Nagpal was diagnosed with malignant prostrate cancer. Despite the worrying news, Usha persevered with the course, encouraged at every step by her children and husband. But since her husband needed her time and attention, she decided not to immediately join the hospital as a volunteer.

In the new year, Mohan Nagpal was better. Usha called up the hospital to ask if she was still wanted. Of course, was the answer. Ever since January 2005, Usha has been working with the palliative department, counselling patients and encouraging them to improve the quality of their lives. She talks to them about yoga, meditation, music therapy, group sharing and Reiki, all of which are available at the OPD on different days of the week. She also helps train family members in wound care and other symptom management.

Initially, Usha found the paediatric unit daunting. “It was heartbreaking to work there, more so because one had to deal with the parents of the children. What does one say to children who have not even seen life but have so many hopes and aspirations which in all probability will remain unfulfilled? What does one say to the parents whose children may never grow up?’’ she asks.

One case really hit her hard. A lower middle class mother who was in her late twenties was sent to the palliative care department. She knew she was dying. Her husband knew she was dying. But all she could think of was her two little children. In the last stages of her life, the young mother was forced to separate her children
and send them to two different families since her daily wage-earning husband would not be able to care for them on his own. “She sobbed bitterly while sending away her children but we knew and she knew that there was no other option,’’ recalls Usha. “It was a particularly difficult case and I can never forget the pain of that mother.’’ A few days after giving her children way, the woman died.

Such tragic cases only strengthen Usha’s resolve to continue working as a volunteer, and she continues to go to the hospital at least twice a week. “I will never leave the hospital,’’ she says quietly. “I want to keep at it as long as I am wanted.’’

(Usha Nagpal can be contacted on 9819588567)

AGAINST ALL ODDS: Usha Nagpal is a volunteer at Tata Memorial Hospital with patients in the terminal stages of

ketan.tanna@timesgroup.com

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Fruits, vegetables and a war against cancer

Ketan Tanna | TNN

Life was good for Shaila Bhagwat. Married to a senior executive, this teacher’s life was closely tied to her husband’s transferable job that took her to different corners of the country. But days after arriving in Mumbai in 1999, her husband was diagnosed with lymph node cancer.

During her husband’s treatment at Hinduja Hospital—which meant spending five hours there, five days a week, she came in touch with other cancer patients. What stood out was the fact that most of them, struggling as they were with radiation and chemotherapy, barely gave any importance to their diet. Eating right was the least of the worries among cancer patients, especially those who belonged to the poor and the middle classes. Moved by the suffering of those around her during her daily visit to Hinduja, Shaila decided that she wanted to do more with her life. She decided to help cancer patients with the aspect they ignored the most—diet.

“I had a standing job offer from a prestigious Mumbai school, but I did not want to be constrained by time. I was welloff. My two grownup daughters were also able to take care of themselves. My husband had recovered and I had plenty of time. That is how my journey began,” she says.

For the last eight years, Shaila, now 57, has been a familiar face at the radiation oncology department of Hinduja Hospital. Twice every week, she can be found in the waiting area, talking to patients, asking about their problems and guiding them. Her emphasis is on advising the patients on what they need to eat and how to make food an ally in fighting cancer.

Radiation and chemotherapy, not to mention a heavy dose of drugs, rob the patients of their energy, says Shaila. The desire to eat also vanishes. The body becomes weak and it takes a lot of effort to go through the drudgery of everyday life, she adds.

A postgraduate in microbiology, Shaila decided to fortify her knowledge in nutrition and enrolled herself in a course conducted by SNDT University. This was enhanced by voracious reading on the internet and extensive interaction with doctors and friends.

Though there is a general diet in place for cancer patients, Shaila often prepares more specific food charts. There are times when poor patients cannot afford to eat the recommended fruits or medicines. For such patients, an alternative is given.

In case of oral cancer, patients are advised on the right combination of daily liquid diet. There have been times when well-off patients overhear Shaila counselling the poor and they anonymously pay for the drugs and fruits needed by those who cannot afford them. Besides drugs and diet, daily exercises and yoga can heal the body faster, says Shaila.

Suman Jadhav, a 60-yearold who was recently diagnosed with cervical cancer, found hope in Shaila in the corridors of the hospital. Her daughter Lalita says the first few days were tough. “But Shailatai gave us time, guided us on what to eat, how to do yoga and how to cope with the disease. (Contact Shaila Bhagwat on 022 26058214)

ketan.tanna@timesgroup.com

A FRUITFUL LIFE: Shaila Bhagwat’s efforts give hope to many

***********

Ketan Tanna

Special Correspondent,

The Times Of India,

Mumbai.

Phone: 91-22-22735240

Mobile:91-9821034500

Email:ketan.tanna@timesgroup.com

or ketan@ketan.net

-------------------

Websites

Work: www.thetimesofindia.com

Personal: www.ketan.net

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

Labels: Articles, Cancer, Ketan Tanna, TimesofIndia

posted by Cancer Awareness @ 4:37 PM 0 comments

Friday, January 11, 2008

ACS Report on Global Cancer Death Rate

Dear Friends,

I am transmitting it just in case it has not come to your attention. Below is the link to the Report:

http://www.cancer.org/docroot/NWS/content/NWS_1_1x_ACS_Report_Puts_Global_Cancer_Death_Rate_at_76_Million.asp

I consider that it has immense utility to effectively implement the advocacy of cancer control in your respective regions.

Also, please do consider its utility as a telecast brief or a press note in the local media to heighten the public awareness and to seek its support to your initiatives.

Your feedback regarding its coverage through the local media to the Society shall be much appreciated.

You are welcome to seek any clarification.

With best regards,
Dr. Rakesh
-------------------------------------------
Dr. Rakesh Gupta, MS, FAIS,
Consultant (India),
Cancer Control Strategies- Workplaces,
American Cancer Society,
B- 113, 10 B Scheme, Gopalpura Byepass,
Jaipur. Pin 302 018. India.
T & F). 91-141-2763135;
Mobile- 91-93516 24313
skype) dr.Rakeshgupta

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

Andrew Becker

American Cancer Society

Phone: 212-237-3899

Email: andrew.becker@cancer.org

-------------------------------

FOR RELEASE 12:01 AM ET

December 17, 2007

New American Cancer Society Report Predicts

Increase in Global Cancer Cases and Deaths

“Global Cancer Facts & Figures” Cites Increasing Tobacco Use, Adoption of Western Diets in Developing Countries Among Causes

ATLANTA, December 17, 2007—A new American Cancer Society report estimates that there will be more than 12 million new cancer cases and 7.6 million cancer deaths (about 20,000 cancer deaths per day) worldwide in 2007. The estimate comes from the inaugural edition of Global Cancer Facts & Figures, the latest addition to the American Cancer Society’s family of Facts & Figures publications. The report estimates that 5.4 million cancer cases and 2.9 million deaths (53%) will occur in economically developed countries, while 6.7 million cases and 4.7 million deaths (70%) will occur in economically developing countries. These projections were calculated by applying the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) Globocan 2002 cancer incidence and mortality estimates to population demographic trends reported by the United Nations.

In economically developed countries, the three most commonly diagnosed cancers in men are prostate, lung, and colorectal cancer. Among women, they are breast, colorectal, and lung cancer. In contrast, the three most commonly diagnosed cancers in economically developing countries are cancers of the lung, stomach, and liver in men, and cancers of the breast, cervix uteri, and stomach in women. In both economically developed and developing countries, the three most common cancers are also the three leading causes of cancer death.

In developing countries, two of the three leading cancers in men (stomach and liver) and in women (cervix and stomach) are related to infection. Approximately 15 percent of all cancer cases worldwide are infection-related, with the percentage of cancers related to infection about three times higher in developing than in developed countries.

“The burden of cancer is increasing in developed countries as deaths from infectious diseases and childhood mortality decline and more people live to older ages when cancer most frequently occurs,” said Ahmedin Jemal, PhD, American Cancer Society epidemiologist and co-author of the report. “Developing countries are facing a ‘double burden’ as cancers due to infectious agents remain a problem while people are also increasingly adopting ‘western’ sedentary lifestyles with higher consumption of tobacco, saturated fat and calorie-dense foods, reduced physical activity, and changing reproductive patterns.”

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) estimates that in 2002 there were approximately 24.6 million people (2.46 crores) worldwide who had been diagnosed with cancer in the past five years. Survival rates for many cancers are lower in economically developing countries than in developed countries largely due to the unavailability or inaccessibility of early detection and treatment services. For example, the five-year breast cancer survival rate in the U.S. is approximately 81 percent but in Sub-Saharan Africa, it is only 32 percent.

Special Section: The Tobacco Pandemic

The publication includes a special section on tobacco, the leading preventable cause of death worldwide. An estimated five million people worldwide died from tobacco use in the year 2000. Of these deaths, about 30 percent (1.42 million) were due to cancer, with 850,000 lung cancer deaths (~60%) alone. Globally, tobacco was responsible for about 100 million deaths (10 crores) during the 20th century, and it is projected to kill more than 1 billion (100 crores) people in the 21st century, with the great majority of these deaths occurring in developing countries. The report notes that halting the rapid spread of tobacco consumption in developing countries is an urgent global health priority.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that approximately 84 percent of the smokers in the world live in countries with a developing or transitional economy. In China alone, there are 350 million smokers, more than the entire population of the U.S.

If current smoking prevalence patterns continue, there will be two billion smokers worldwide by the year 2030, half of whom will die of smoking-related diseases.

The American Cancer Society is dedicated to eliminating cancer as a major health problem by saving lives, diminishing suffering and preventing cancer through research, education, advocacy and service. Founded in 1913 and with national headquarters in Atlanta, the Society has 13 regional Divisions and local offices in 3,400 communities, involving millions of volunteers across the United States. For more information anytime, call toll free 1-800-ACS-2345 or visit www.cancer.org.

# # #

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

Labels: ACS, Cancer, DEATH

posted by Bhavya @ 4:30 PM 0 comments

Saturday, November 3, 2007

The final days of Kevi...

A concern social activist Ningreichon was the last person who was near Kevi. She is a young activist based in delhi. She is also from Nagaland. This account was written by her. Its a story of Kevi. Her last days, her smile and her final fate.....

These lines tell the spirit of Kevi...

("She added how the doctors are still contemplating her case because they are 'afraid' to operate on her "they are scared that I will not survive" and she laughs!)

------------------------------------

Friends

Thank you all for your concerns.

Sorry for takin time to let you all know what is with Kevis case.
The parents are also informed about you all and they send their greetings and wishes to you all who makes their burden lighter. The inhuman people around like those in Max "super speciality" hospital who are just the antithesis of what it claims "caring for you… caring for life"; the slogan they use that betrays many there are also people like you all who cares. We don't know who Kevi Angami is but humanity comes calling in the yet another form and this time in the face of kevi and for those of us who cannot tolerate atrocities and injustice kevi is seen in the faces of many; faces whose voices are silenced, faces who have been betrayed by systems they cannot fight against(corporates in this case!) May we never fail when such faces appears.

kevi is out of Max hospital but not without great humiliation. Some friends who happened to know the owner intervened. They did not charge the remaining amount other than the money that was paid(1,35000) . The fact that these friends are lawyers helped immensely and my assumption is that one strong point that speaks of the grave injustice meted to kevi which is legally and ethically wrong was the fact that max hospital stopped her medication for 2 weeks yet did not let her go. They were not treating her but just adding on to her pain and the medical bills. A hello in Max and the likes cost 500 and euphemistically they call it 'consultation fee'. Consultation when the patient nor the parents were informed about what all is happening. I am not able to put what all they went through. It just drives ones mad just listening to their story. The soft spoken and tired father narrates what the admin head said 'if you are poor why did you come to such a place'. The father said he was so hurt and it only goes on to say nothing can put some sense into such people but I am happy that the father said ' some people love money, some people love life'….. May the woman and the band of criminals learn that life is not just about money and making money.

The endless hours of paperwork went on till sunday morning. We were told that AIIMs would not admit the case so the option was to go to some private hospital after making some rounds mahinder in green park said they will admit her. kevi was taken around 3am there but after they saw her condition they refused to take her in. This is despite the fact that they were told about the case beforehand.

At that wee hour options were running out..but but even if the door is closed the window is wide open..wider than the door.

We woke a doctor friend who works in safdarjung hospital. kevi was admitted in the same hospital Sunday morning at around 5.00. She had a colostomy the following evening. It is not a beautiful sight and she is in pain but

Medically it is a 'hopeless' case but she has not given up hope. Every ounce left in her is defying and fighting against medical proclamation.

While she was kept waiting in the hospi she called her fren to tell her that she is now in safdarjung and that she hands over 'the money' to her mother the next day because they have no money. She added how the doctors are still contemplating her case because they are 'afraid' to operate on her "they are scared that I will not survive" and she laughs!

She is the 25 year old Kevi Angami who is too strong for wimps in max hospital to handle.

PS:YOu can write to her as well and I can take a print out and pass it on to her. May she be comforted knowing that all of you are with her

chon

--
" I am the escaped one, after I was born they locked me up inside me but I left. My soul seeks me, through hills and valley, I hope my soul never finds me." Fernando Pessoa

Send your doing's to aware.cancer@gmail.com

Labels: Cancer, India, Kevi Angami

posted by Bhavya @ 7:50 PM 0 comments

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