Sunday, 27 September 2015
Friday, 18 September 2015
Dr. Renuka David with Neerja Malik on Breast Cancer - Radiant Wellness
Published on Sep 18, 2015
Wellness talk - Dr. Renuka David with Neerja Malik on Breast Cancer - Radiant Wellness. Neerja Malik, a cancer conqueror, talks about how she dealt with a double-instance of breast cancer, prior to the Radiant Wellness Conclave 2015 organized by Radiant Group.
Monday, 7 September 2015
Cancer survivor recalls bright side of long battle
Priya Menon| TNN | Sep 7, 2015
CHENNAI: Neerja Malik still remembers the day she was diagnosed with cancer in her left breast. It was Friday the 13th but unlike others, she doesn't consider it an unlucky day. It was a wonderful day for me, for it was the day I was diagnosed and could do something about it, says the 61-year-old cancer conqueror.
It is this ability to look at the bright side, and convert any adversity into an opportunity that saw Neerja through miscarriages, a stillbirth, and her long-drawn-out battle with cancer. And it is this desire to reach out to others that led her to narrate her story in 'I Inspire'. The book, which will be launched mid-October, exudes Neerja's positive approach to life. "You should never say 'why me' because then you become full of self-pity. You are digging your own grave deeper," she says.
It was in February 1998 that Neerja felt a twinge in her left breast while doing aerobics. "I felt a pea-sized lump but ignored it," she says. When she felt the twinge again, she decided to go to a hospital. "In three generations of my family there have been 80 cases of cancer so I wanted to rule it out," says Neerja. When tests confirmed her fears, initially she broke down. "Doctors in Mumbai told me I have a 25% chance of survival if I went to US or France," says Neerja, who decided against it as her twins were only seven years old. "For three days, I wept. But, on the third day, I told myself I will stop crying."
After her surgery on February 19 she was back in Chennai by July. She began counselling cancer patients at Apollo Hospitals, where she was first diagnosed. Neerja established a support group for cancer patients on March 8, 2004 at Apollo Hospitals. "I began with 20 women cancer conquerors. But within a week, there were only four of us; the others dropped out as the hospital reminded them of the suffering they had undergone," says Neerja, who runs the programme with just two volunteers. Even in November 2004, when she felt a familiar discomfort in her right breast, she was prepared to battle it out. "A few years ago, I thought I should record the incidents of my life, the miracles and the wave of love I got from all over the world," says Neerja.
Her mission is to bring a smile to the faces of the ailing. "I am on my phone 24X7, taking patients through diagnosis and chemotherapy," she says. What satisfaction does she get? "If I can get a smile out of a person who wants to curl up and die; if at the end of it he is ready to face the treatment, what more can I ask for?" says Neerja.
CHENNAI: Neerja Malik still remembers the day she was diagnosed with cancer in her left breast. It was Friday the 13th but unlike others, she doesn't consider it an unlucky day. It was a wonderful day for me, for it was the day I was diagnosed and could do something about it, says the 61-year-old cancer conqueror.
It is this ability to look at the bright side, and convert any adversity into an opportunity that saw Neerja through miscarriages, a stillbirth, and her long-drawn-out battle with cancer. And it is this desire to reach out to others that led her to narrate her story in 'I Inspire'. The book, which will be launched mid-October, exudes Neerja's positive approach to life. "You should never say 'why me' because then you become full of self-pity. You are digging your own grave deeper," she says.
It was in February 1998 that Neerja felt a twinge in her left breast while doing aerobics. "I felt a pea-sized lump but ignored it," she says. When she felt the twinge again, she decided to go to a hospital. "In three generations of my family there have been 80 cases of cancer so I wanted to rule it out," says Neerja. When tests confirmed her fears, initially she broke down. "Doctors in Mumbai told me I have a 25% chance of survival if I went to US or France," says Neerja, who decided against it as her twins were only seven years old. "For three days, I wept. But, on the third day, I told myself I will stop crying."
After her surgery on February 19 she was back in Chennai by July. She began counselling cancer patients at Apollo Hospitals, where she was first diagnosed. Neerja established a support group for cancer patients on March 8, 2004 at Apollo Hospitals. "I began with 20 women cancer conquerors. But within a week, there were only four of us; the others dropped out as the hospital reminded them of the suffering they had undergone," says Neerja, who runs the programme with just two volunteers. Even in November 2004, when she felt a familiar discomfort in her right breast, she was prepared to battle it out. "A few years ago, I thought I should record the incidents of my life, the miracles and the wave of love I got from all over the world," says Neerja.
Her mission is to bring a smile to the faces of the ailing. "I am on my phone 24X7, taking patients through diagnosis and chemotherapy," she says. What satisfaction does she get? "If I can get a smile out of a person who wants to curl up and die; if at the end of it he is ready to face the treatment, what more can I ask for?" says Neerja.
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