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PATIENT TESTIMONIALS
My brother was first diagnosed with a tumor in his pelvis in May 2011. Lab tests revealed that the tumor was malignant and a surgical biopsy was recommended. Various specialists consulted thereafter were all of the same opinion, but also fearful that the surgery would be a complicated one because of the location of the tumor. We were advised to seek treatment out of Kenya, if we could, where we were likely to get more specialized treatment at an affordable cost, than we would at home. .... Read More
Carolynne Mitaki
Nairobi, Kenya
After six months of continental tour of Europe, America and Canada and happy reunion with the relatives there my wife was glad to find her in good shape. Fitness concept is in our blood; regular morning walk and balanced diets are our forte. We keep miles away from junk foods, and fizzy drinks. Fruits and veggies are regular; canned stuff to the minimal and always keep our palate in check. Yet, a strange thing happened: she began losing weight, making her happier despite never being overweight. I, too, thought it was good to be lean in old age. Obesity is a disease per se, adding burden to the bony frame and the living. In our zest for slimming we became blind to the rapidity of the fall. She lost over five kg within a week. Hardly a month passed by since then, she experienced a sort of heaviness in the middle of sternum - right under the ribs. Could it be a symptom of ulcer? She was suffering from threatening suspicion inwardly for some time in her lonely dreaming.
The suspicion was deeply grounded in her mind. On the very first appointment this was told to the medical specialist, who immediately referred her to the general surgeon. His diagnosis was, 'simple infection'; a few antibiotic pills would set her right within a week. Unfortunately, it didn't work. We moved to gastroenterologist, who ran us through endoscopy, ultrasound and colonoscopy one after another -- still, leading to no cure.
One night she developed unbearable pain in the stomach. Another gastroenterologist diagnosed it as "functional dyspepsia'. At the most it would take one week, he said. His prescription too, proved ineffective. Then, a battery of nine tests followed, omitting the blood test, because it was found normal, six months ago, and prior to the start of her journey. Out of nine tests only CEA value was found to be a bit elevated.
CEA stands for 'carcino- embryonic antigen'. Carcino is related to cancer. Worried, I had a chat, on the Internet, with one Dr. Jasmina, who explained many causes for elevated value of this, but assured me, it need not be a precursor of cancer.
But it was not to be: subsequent blood test diagnosed a deadly blood cancer known as Acute Myeloid Leukemia: AML, for short. It was appalling enough to crush my spirit. On top of it the oncologist told on the first day, "At this age the prognosis is not good". She was over sixty.
With the ominous thought of looming gloomy future we agreed for dreaded chemotherapy, as no other alternatives could be applicable to her, due to age. Even her sister's offer of donating bone marrow couldn't be resorted to. With chemo a plethora of other ailments emerged - loss of appetite, vomiting, and shivering fever. Weeks passed, with no sign of any improvement. A free fall of blood counts continued unchecked. With abysmal low count of white blood cells there was frightening prospect of infection messing up the whole affair. Rock bottom platelet counts might lead her to non-stop bleeding on the slightest of miss-steps. Frequent blood and platelet transfusion became a routine. But, platelet donors were hard to find as majority fall short of the required condition.
I had no choice but to bear the agony. Worried and with heavy heart I asked the doctor, "Is there any hope?" His reply was," I told you on the first day". A pause followed and he said grimly, "Bone marrow is not responding".
It's the disease of the bone marrow responsible for producing good blood cells. And blood is the main thing to keep the body machine moving. The bad blood cells produced in the bone marrow, will flow to the corpuscles of every tissue and damage the entire body leading to death.
My imagination ran wild; all bad thoughts crowding the mind. With a timid mind overflowing with ominous forebodings I asked the junior doctor, "Is there any hope for continuing the treatment?" He was straightforward and said bluntly, "Hardly any hope of survival, it's up to you to keep her, here." I didn't have any alternative but to resign before the inevitable.
She was given 'Cyterabine' based chemo. In view of her age the oncologist choose five days of induction instead of seven for younger patients. The doctor cautioned us to look out for the following probable side effects.
Loss of appetite and vomiting appeared first, followed by shivering high fever. Fall of blood counts was usual. Fatigue persisted. Harrowing moments ensued for weeks. She recalls one crucial night spent without a wink of sleep; incidently I too was absent that night; she was alone in the room; the nurses were on toes, every now and then peeping in to see if the drip pouch is empty, replacing it the moment it goes dry. One Soka Gakkai enthusiast -- while on visit in the hospital -- gave her a 'mantra'. She kept on reciting the 'mantra' throughout the night and once she sensed some strange aura flooding the room. Agonizing night over, she narrated this when I joined her next morning. I am a hard core atheist and not a bit superstitious. I don't know if it was a good omen. Of course, after about a month the bone marrow began responding to the drug heralding first recovery phase. And we were let off for one week.
Coming back home she resumed to her regular household chores - dusting, cleaning, cooking and everything. She is a cleanliness freak. She was fond of prawns. So, I brought jumbo sized prawns and chicken legs. She barbequed the legs and prepared her favourite Bengali dish "Malaikari" of prawns and gave her palate a good run. But her first choice, raw (uncooked) fruits were forbidden. However, seven days at home were fabulous.
Some other side effects such as yellowing of the white of the eyes, a few spots on the thighs appeared later in the succeeding consolidation courses. The most horrible looking side effect was the total hair loss. Her head turned into a glistening helmet without a single hair on the skull.
The first course is known as induction and all the succeeding ones are consolidation. It is meant for - as the name suggests - consolidation of the previous courses in order to prevent relapse. It is just like compacting the concrete pile by repeated hammering.
After seven days of holiday we came back to hospital routine - the same drip and tablets; hunting for blood donors; collecting blood and platelet; transfusion of blood; dropping of the blood counts followed by recovery phase etc. And, again holidays for seven days: savouring the change and so on. We were in a different set of routine now. This way we had five consolidation courses in addition to the initial induction. In all the subsequent consolidation phases the bone marrow responded splendidly well. In the final course she was given 'etoposide' instead of 'cyterabine'. The last drug had some strong effect on her and that was the first time she complained of uneasiness. And it was only once during the long six-month stay in the hospital she said, "I am not o.k." But it was over soon enough.
She was admitted in the Dharamshila Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Delhi on 2nd June, 2006 and discharged on 30th November, 2006. She is not under any medication since then. She is still alive and kicking. All her organs are in good order. This 6th April test shows all time high haemoglobin count of 14. It was never more than 8 even during her youthful days. There is one more healthy side effect in favour of her. Earlier she had a tendency of asthma. She was dependent on inhaler. Now she got rid of the puff.
We tried to analyze the causes of her spectacular recovery. First, all her vital organs were in good health. One of the main causes of bad prognosis after the age of sixty is the worsening condition of various vital organs -- liver, kidney, heart, pancreas etc. With age it degenerates. This is the normal natural process. It can be slowed down to a limited extent but cannot be reversed altogether. With the administration of chemotherapy the condition worsens further, multiplying complications leading to rapid death. Our earlier regimen of regular workouts, good diets, and healthy habits paid rich dividends. To keep the bodily organs in working order is the individual's responsibility. To live well you have to keep well and it should begin well enough early in life before it is too late. Due to our sheer negligence we allow this undue degeneration to take place. As a result we pay the price by suffering and death.
The next factor may be of paramount importance. It was the positive mental attitude. From the first day to the last in the hospital she never displayed any negativity. A full throated "Fine" used to be her stock reply to the doctor's query "How are you?' every morning. To anybody on phone or otherwise, her reply was always, "I'm ok", without any exception for a single day. What is more, she even washed her clothes in the hospital. The main complaint was not to be able to consume food. She lost appetite for food mostly.
On the other hand, we saw much younger patients with impaired organs, dying. She witnessed three patients dying next to her, when we shifted to double-bed room later. Obviously their immune system was weak to fight disease. They become half dead simply by hearing the word "cancer". This fear psychosis kills them before they are actually dead. We cannot blame them, because it is the common phobia about cancer current among the public: cancer is dangerous; cancer is deadly; cancer is incurable. To maintain a positive frame of mind when you are drowning in the sea of negativity is not an easy task. My wife kept floating under such dire circumstances.
Of course, the way I divulged the news might have cushioned the impact on her mind. To open up to her with the horrific news was a tough job for me. I was in a dilemma to tell or not to tell and how to tell. Against the advice of my relatives, casually I asked her, "Did you know that Suchitra Sen (a Bengali film actress) had blood cancer?"
"Yes, I knew. But she got cured."
"Exactly; blood cancer doesn't necessarily mean death"
"Of course"
Possibly, it was another factor to keep her confidence buoyant.
Most importantly we appreciate the treatment she received at the hospital. She was under the charge of the renowned oncologist Dr. Praveen Kumar Bansal. He always radiated hope and confidence in his patients. His diagnosis and procedure of treatment were the most vital part of her cure.
We heartily express our profound gratitude to the doctors and staff of the Dharamshila Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Delhi. And we can't forget the selfless blood donors coming from Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Faridabad, besides Noida and Delhi. Internet too, was a great boon to us for finding voluntary blood donors.
Mr. Nalinaksha Mutsuddi
Survivor of Cancer
The suspicion was deeply grounded in her mind. On the very first appointment this was told to the medical specialist, who immediately referred her to the general surgeon. His diagnosis was, 'simple infection'; a few antibiotic pills would set her right within a week. Unfortunately, it didn't work. We moved to gastroenterologist, who ran us through endoscopy, ultrasound and colonoscopy one after another -- still, leading to no cure.
One night she developed unbearable pain in the stomach. Another gastroenterologist diagnosed it as "functional dyspepsia'. At the most it would take one week, he said. His prescription too, proved ineffective. Then, a battery of nine tests followed, omitting the blood test, because it was found normal, six months ago, and prior to the start of her journey. Out of nine tests only CEA value was found to be a bit elevated.
CEA stands for 'carcino- embryonic antigen'. Carcino is related to cancer. Worried, I had a chat, on the Internet, with one Dr. Jasmina, who explained many causes for elevated value of this, but assured me, it need not be a precursor of cancer.
But it was not to be: subsequent blood test diagnosed a deadly blood cancer known as Acute Myeloid Leukemia: AML, for short. It was appalling enough to crush my spirit. On top of it the oncologist told on the first day, "At this age the prognosis is not good". She was over sixty.
With the ominous thought of looming gloomy future we agreed for dreaded chemotherapy, as no other alternatives could be applicable to her, due to age. Even her sister's offer of donating bone marrow couldn't be resorted to. With chemo a plethora of other ailments emerged - loss of appetite, vomiting, and shivering fever. Weeks passed, with no sign of any improvement. A free fall of blood counts continued unchecked. With abysmal low count of white blood cells there was frightening prospect of infection messing up the whole affair. Rock bottom platelet counts might lead her to non-stop bleeding on the slightest of miss-steps. Frequent blood and platelet transfusion became a routine. But, platelet donors were hard to find as majority fall short of the required condition.
I had no choice but to bear the agony. Worried and with heavy heart I asked the doctor, "Is there any hope?" His reply was," I told you on the first day". A pause followed and he said grimly, "Bone marrow is not responding".
It's the disease of the bone marrow responsible for producing good blood cells. And blood is the main thing to keep the body machine moving. The bad blood cells produced in the bone marrow, will flow to the corpuscles of every tissue and damage the entire body leading to death.
My imagination ran wild; all bad thoughts crowding the mind. With a timid mind overflowing with ominous forebodings I asked the junior doctor, "Is there any hope for continuing the treatment?" He was straightforward and said bluntly, "Hardly any hope of survival, it's up to you to keep her, here." I didn't have any alternative but to resign before the inevitable.
She was given 'Cyterabine' based chemo. In view of her age the oncologist choose five days of induction instead of seven for younger patients. The doctor cautioned us to look out for the following probable side effects.
- Hair loss;
- Mouth sores;
- Lowered resistance to infection on account of low
- white blood counts;
- Fatigue due to low red blood cells;
- Easy bruising or bleeding due to low platelet counts;
- Loss of appetite;
- Nausea and vomiting;
- Yellowing of the white of eyes;
- Spots and rashes on the skin, etc.
Loss of appetite and vomiting appeared first, followed by shivering high fever. Fall of blood counts was usual. Fatigue persisted. Harrowing moments ensued for weeks. She recalls one crucial night spent without a wink of sleep; incidently I too was absent that night; she was alone in the room; the nurses were on toes, every now and then peeping in to see if the drip pouch is empty, replacing it the moment it goes dry. One Soka Gakkai enthusiast -- while on visit in the hospital -- gave her a 'mantra'. She kept on reciting the 'mantra' throughout the night and once she sensed some strange aura flooding the room. Agonizing night over, she narrated this when I joined her next morning. I am a hard core atheist and not a bit superstitious. I don't know if it was a good omen. Of course, after about a month the bone marrow began responding to the drug heralding first recovery phase. And we were let off for one week.
Coming back home she resumed to her regular household chores - dusting, cleaning, cooking and everything. She is a cleanliness freak. She was fond of prawns. So, I brought jumbo sized prawns and chicken legs. She barbequed the legs and prepared her favourite Bengali dish "Malaikari" of prawns and gave her palate a good run. But her first choice, raw (uncooked) fruits were forbidden. However, seven days at home were fabulous.
Some other side effects such as yellowing of the white of the eyes, a few spots on the thighs appeared later in the succeeding consolidation courses. The most horrible looking side effect was the total hair loss. Her head turned into a glistening helmet without a single hair on the skull.
The first course is known as induction and all the succeeding ones are consolidation. It is meant for - as the name suggests - consolidation of the previous courses in order to prevent relapse. It is just like compacting the concrete pile by repeated hammering.
After seven days of holiday we came back to hospital routine - the same drip and tablets; hunting for blood donors; collecting blood and platelet; transfusion of blood; dropping of the blood counts followed by recovery phase etc. And, again holidays for seven days: savouring the change and so on. We were in a different set of routine now. This way we had five consolidation courses in addition to the initial induction. In all the subsequent consolidation phases the bone marrow responded splendidly well. In the final course she was given 'etoposide' instead of 'cyterabine'. The last drug had some strong effect on her and that was the first time she complained of uneasiness. And it was only once during the long six-month stay in the hospital she said, "I am not o.k." But it was over soon enough.
She was admitted in the Dharamshila Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Delhi on 2nd June, 2006 and discharged on 30th November, 2006. She is not under any medication since then. She is still alive and kicking. All her organs are in good order. This 6th April test shows all time high haemoglobin count of 14. It was never more than 8 even during her youthful days. There is one more healthy side effect in favour of her. Earlier she had a tendency of asthma. She was dependent on inhaler. Now she got rid of the puff.
We tried to analyze the causes of her spectacular recovery. First, all her vital organs were in good health. One of the main causes of bad prognosis after the age of sixty is the worsening condition of various vital organs -- liver, kidney, heart, pancreas etc. With age it degenerates. This is the normal natural process. It can be slowed down to a limited extent but cannot be reversed altogether. With the administration of chemotherapy the condition worsens further, multiplying complications leading to rapid death. Our earlier regimen of regular workouts, good diets, and healthy habits paid rich dividends. To keep the bodily organs in working order is the individual's responsibility. To live well you have to keep well and it should begin well enough early in life before it is too late. Due to our sheer negligence we allow this undue degeneration to take place. As a result we pay the price by suffering and death.
The next factor may be of paramount importance. It was the positive mental attitude. From the first day to the last in the hospital she never displayed any negativity. A full throated "Fine" used to be her stock reply to the doctor's query "How are you?' every morning. To anybody on phone or otherwise, her reply was always, "I'm ok", without any exception for a single day. What is more, she even washed her clothes in the hospital. The main complaint was not to be able to consume food. She lost appetite for food mostly.
On the other hand, we saw much younger patients with impaired organs, dying. She witnessed three patients dying next to her, when we shifted to double-bed room later. Obviously their immune system was weak to fight disease. They become half dead simply by hearing the word "cancer". This fear psychosis kills them before they are actually dead. We cannot blame them, because it is the common phobia about cancer current among the public: cancer is dangerous; cancer is deadly; cancer is incurable. To maintain a positive frame of mind when you are drowning in the sea of negativity is not an easy task. My wife kept floating under such dire circumstances.
Of course, the way I divulged the news might have cushioned the impact on her mind. To open up to her with the horrific news was a tough job for me. I was in a dilemma to tell or not to tell and how to tell. Against the advice of my relatives, casually I asked her, "Did you know that Suchitra Sen (a Bengali film actress) had blood cancer?"
"Yes, I knew. But she got cured."
"Exactly; blood cancer doesn't necessarily mean death"
"Of course"
Possibly, it was another factor to keep her confidence buoyant.
Most importantly we appreciate the treatment she received at the hospital. She was under the charge of the renowned oncologist Dr. Praveen Kumar Bansal. He always radiated hope and confidence in his patients. His diagnosis and procedure of treatment were the most vital part of her cure.
We heartily express our profound gratitude to the doctors and staff of the Dharamshila Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, Delhi. And we can't forget the selfless blood donors coming from Gurgaon, Ghaziabad and Faridabad, besides Noida and Delhi. Internet too, was a great boon to us for finding voluntary blood donors.
Mr. Nalinaksha Mutsuddi
Survivor of Cancer
My brother Mr. Iqbal Singh, 38 years old, started having problem of pain abdomen since June - 2010. On investigations, a tumour of 5 cm X 5 cm was found in right adrenal gland. We consulted doctors in very reputed hospitals, who only gave pain relief to the patient and didn't suggest any permanent treatment. In February 2011, we consulted doctors in Ganga Ram Hospital, who performed surgery and post surgery it became known to us that my brother had a cancerous right adrenal tumour, which by them had increased to a size of 19 cm X 19 cm and 75% of which had been removed during the surgery. The tumour was pressing IVC and lower lobe of liver. We were advised radiotherapy to the area by doctors in major hospitals in Delhi but no one gave the guarantee that RT will stop the tumour from increasing / spreading. At last, we came to Dharamshila Cancer Hospital, where surgical oncologist after going through all the investigations said that surgery of remaining part of tumour was possible. Although, the surgery was of high risk, the surgical team of Dr. Niranjan B. Naik removed the tumour and after intense and dedicated care given by doctor, nurses and paramedics of Dharamshila Hospital, my brother is getting discharged today in a stable condition. Our whole family is very very thankful to the Dharamshila Cancer Hospital's Medical and paramedical Team who showed us ray of hope and treated our patient successfully.
Mr. Inderjeet Singh
Brother of Mr. Iqbal Singh (Patient)
Mr. Inderjeet Singh
Brother of Mr. Iqbal Singh (Patient)
In 1999, I went to Dharamshila Hospital to look up a friend, who advised me to get my Annual Health Check up done. Within 1 hour, I was informed that I have a large ovarian tumour requiring immediate surgery. I was operated the next day and took six cycles of chemotherapy. I have been going for follow up every year and am totally cancer free. Dharamshila Hospital's staff is excellent and took care of all my physical and emotional needs.
Mr. Krishna Sharma
Ovarian Cancer Survivor
Mr. Krishna Sharma
Ovarian Cancer Survivor
I was in Dubai, when I was advised laser surgery for enlarged prostate. I called my sister in USA, who advised me to go to Dharamshila Hospital to rule out prostate cancer because our father had prostate cancer. I immediately flew to Delhi and reached Dharamshila Hospital, where 24 biopsies of the prostate were taken, 23 were negative and one was positive. I was advised radiation therapy and hormone therapy. I read lot about prostate cancer and was scared about the side effects of Radiation and wanted Robot Surgery, which was refused.
I wasted 2 months to make up my mind and finally doctors at Dharamshila Hospital were successful in convincing me that I should start radiation six weeks of Radiation, and hormone therapy did wonders on me.
I am totally cancer free today and am enjoying my normal life for last 5 years. I owe my life to doctors of Dharamshila Hospital and World class radiation technology, which gave no side effects.
Mr. P. S. Khanna
Prostate Cancer Survivor
I wasted 2 months to make up my mind and finally doctors at Dharamshila Hospital were successful in convincing me that I should start radiation six weeks of Radiation, and hormone therapy did wonders on me.
I am totally cancer free today and am enjoying my normal life for last 5 years. I owe my life to doctors of Dharamshila Hospital and World class radiation technology, which gave no side effects.
Mr. P. S. Khanna
Prostate Cancer Survivor
I felt a lump in my breast, went for Mammography and cancer breast was suspected. I called my only son, Dr. Sunil Modi in England, who advised me to go to Dharamshila Hospital where cancer breast was confirmed.
I was all alone and my son couldn't get the ticket to be with me during my surgery. Doctors and nurses and other support staff at Dharamshila Hospital were so caring and compassionate, not for a minute, I felt my son and daughter-in-law were not with me during surgery and postoperative period. My son arrived on the day of discharge and was overwhelmed with joy to see me in such good spirits and hearing my experience.
My experience during Radiotherapy for six weeks was equally good and I did not have to suffer at all.
Now, I am totally cancer free and recommend all suspected or confirmed cancer patients to Dharamshila Hospital.
Mrs. Pramila Modi
Survivor of Cancer
I was all alone and my son couldn't get the ticket to be with me during my surgery. Doctors and nurses and other support staff at Dharamshila Hospital were so caring and compassionate, not for a minute, I felt my son and daughter-in-law were not with me during surgery and postoperative period. My son arrived on the day of discharge and was overwhelmed with joy to see me in such good spirits and hearing my experience.
My experience during Radiotherapy for six weeks was equally good and I did not have to suffer at all.
Now, I am totally cancer free and recommend all suspected or confirmed cancer patients to Dharamshila Hospital.
Mrs. Pramila Modi
Survivor of Cancer
When I was told, that I have cancer, choosing hospital with right mix of technology and expertise was very crucial and important. After going through some of the top Delhi Hospital and internet research, I came to the conclusion that Dharamshila Hospital is the only cancer hospital of North India, doing the type of radical and reconstructive surgery, I needed.
I was told that I need neck dissection, removal of entire jaw and part of my tongue followed by reconstruction of my jaw. My concerns about my facial appearance, swallowing and speech were addressed. I went through 10 hours of Surgery, Six weeks of radiation therapy and chemotherapy. I am waiting for my dentures to be fixed.
I have regained my vigour and energy. My speech is improving with every passing day and will further improve after getting dentures.
My experience and stay at Dharamshila Hospital was highly satisfying and comfortable. With God's grace and appreciable efforts of Doctors, Nurses and Supported staff Dharamshila Hospital, I am enjoying normal life.
The entire staff was very courteous and addressed all my needs with a smile.
Mr. Rajesh Dhawn
Head and Neck Cancer Survivor
I was told that I need neck dissection, removal of entire jaw and part of my tongue followed by reconstruction of my jaw. My concerns about my facial appearance, swallowing and speech were addressed. I went through 10 hours of Surgery, Six weeks of radiation therapy and chemotherapy. I am waiting for my dentures to be fixed.
I have regained my vigour and energy. My speech is improving with every passing day and will further improve after getting dentures.
My experience and stay at Dharamshila Hospital was highly satisfying and comfortable. With God's grace and appreciable efforts of Doctors, Nurses and Supported staff Dharamshila Hospital, I am enjoying normal life.
The entire staff was very courteous and addressed all my needs with a smile.
Mr. Rajesh Dhawn
Head and Neck Cancer Survivor
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