Cancer

Anu Bhatia, a school teacher, fulfilled her late husband’s wish to write a novel after he lost his voice to cancer of the vocal chords to help those going through similar experiences. Her book sensitively captures the two year’s journey of loss and grief. In May 2016, I had taken a bunch of kids on a school trip to Germany. As my husband was not there with me, I would call him every night before going to sleep and rhapsodise about the places I had visited. He would laugh and share my excitement…

Ramendra Kumar is a motivational speaker and an award winning author.  A positive person, he has also taken his ongoing battle with colon cancer in his stride. He talks about how he balances both his worlds. I am an engineer and an MBA who had a long stint with SAIL in its Corporate Communications Department. I have had 42 well-received publications to my credit and have been a part of a number of literary festivals, across the world. I was diagnosed with Stage 2B Colon Cancer around 40…

Mark your calendars. Share with cancer survivors of cervical cancer, vulvar cancer, endometrial cancer, ovarian cancer and men after prostate cancer and penile cancer. They should all know about lower limb lymphedema, a significant survivorship issue   While there is some awareness on lymphedema after breast cancer, we found that the awareness on lower limb lymphedema was extremely low. Lower Limb Lymphedema affects women with gynaecological cancers like cervical cancer, vulvar…

Shormistha Mukherjee, who was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018, authors a book about her treatment and struggles with disarming honesty and hilarious observations. She wishes to emphasize that cancer doesn’t have to be a death sentence as depicted in most films and books. Read her insightful interview. Congratulations on the success of your book ‘Cancer, You Picked the Wrong Girl’. It is a brilliant blend of health and humour. What motivated you to write this book? Actually there were two…

एक रूटीन वार्षिक जांच से स्टेज 3 प्रोस्टेट कैंसर के आक्रामक रूप का निदान हुआ। इस लेख में एक प्रोस्टेट कैंसर उत्तरजीवी (सर्वाइवर) निदान, उपचार और उसके बाद के 5 साल के अपने अनुभव साझा करते हैं।   मुझे प्रोस्टेट कैंसर का निदान 50 साल के होते ही मिला। एक नियमित वार्षिक मेडिकल चेकअप से पता चला कि मेरा पीएसए (प्रोस्टेट स्पेसिफिक एंटीजन) 9 है - सामान्य रेंज 0-4  है। मैं अन्यथा काफी स्वस्थ था, मेरे वार्षिक जांच में कोई अन्य चिंताजनक संकेत नहीं थे। मेरी जीवन शैली बहुत सक्रिय थी, और…

Jyoti Pande Lavakare has enough data to make us aware how harmful the air we breathe in is. She put it all together in a book, which is also driven by a personal loss. A relentless activist, she advocates mindful consumption and slow living and wants us to realise and act on air pollution, which is increasingly proving fatal. How far do you think spreading awareness about air pollution will help in stemming it? Awareness precedes action. Unless we know how harmful air pollution is to our health…

Breast Cancer Survivors live with constant fear and anxiety of relapse. They often wonder what they can do to reduce the risk of recurrence. They want to be better prepared but also know how to manage their emotions better. Join us on this webinar to understand this topic better. Can I prevent recurrence of breast cancer? What percentage of breast cancer survivors will have recurrence?  How can I deal with my constant worry and anxiety? PatientsEngage and Biocon Biologics brought together…

Dr. Ajit M Vaze, senior urological surgeon and past President of Urological Society of India, talks about the two main prostrate problems faced by men, prostate enlargement and prostate cancer, and recommends tips for keeping a healthy prostate. What are the common prostate problems? Diseases of prostate can be divided broadly into cancerous and non-cancerous. The commonest of non-cancerous problems of prostate is benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) — also called prostate gland enlargement.…

A routine annual screening led to a diagnosis of an aggressive form of Stage 3 prostate cancer. A prostate cancer survivor shares his experience from diagnosis to treatment and now a 5-year survival. Background I was diagnosed with prostate cancer when I had just turned 50. A routine annual medical checkup revealed a PSA (prostate specific antigen) reading of 9 (normal range being 0-4). I was otherwise quite healthy, with no other red flags in my annual medical, and led a very active lifestyle…

Patients with advanced cancer often experience cachexia. This is extremely distressing to caregivers. Dr. Arjun Gupta, gastrointestinal oncologist and researcher addresses questions on this difficult topic. What is cachexia? People with cancer often experience weight loss, loss of muscle mass, and become weaker as the cancer progresses. Their quality of life decreases, and they may experience increased toxicity from cancer treatments. This collection of symptoms is called ‘’cachexia’’. It is…