Published in DC Bengaluru September 19, 2011 · Caregivers reach out to cancer-hit·

     She lost her husband to cancer, just 27 hours before her silver jubilee celebrations and is still tending to her mother, who’s fighting cancer. But Anita Roy Pilgrim has still not given up hope. “It was last year that I lost my husband to cancer. He had developed dual site cancer and my mother is fighting cancer for the past five years. It drains a person emotionally, physically and financially, but as a caregiver I know that we can really a make a difference to their lives and maybe even help them live longer,” said Anita.She is a part of ‘Connect to Heal’, a self- help group of cancer warriors, as they call themselves. They are caregivers of cancer patients who have got together to reach out to Bengalureans. As per the World Health Organization data, incidence of cancer is projected to increase from 11.3 million to 15.5 million by the year 2030. “With the increased risk of cancer, we think there is an urgent need to establish a strong support system for cancer patients as well as their caregivers,” said Padma, one of the core group members who has also been a caregiver. She lost her mother to cancer. “I remember as a caregiver I was not very good. I was initially upset with my mother because I thought, as a doctor, how could she not take care of herself and wind up with something as serious as cancer. But after I lost her I realized that this was not the right attitude,” said Padma, who started ‘Connect to Heal’, the self-help group in the year 2009.A positive attitude and approach goes a long way towards treating and even curing cancer patients. “Once diagnosed with cancer, people think it’s the visa to death. But I want to tell them that it is a completely wrong notion because with a positive approach one can fight cancer and lead a completely healthy life. I want to tell people that there is life after cancer,” said Anil Singh, who was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, cancer of the plasma cells, in the year 2007. But now after continuous treatment and therapy he is completely fit and fine, traveling the world and even going to places like ‘Mansarovar’.He wants to send this message to Bengalureans. He encouraged many cancer patients and their family members who had gathered for the ‘Cancer Watch’ awareness programme at St Jude’s Church at Byapanahalli on Sunday. This was the first of their series of awareness programmes. Now this self-help group is planning to reach out to various cancer patients and their caregivers by networking with cancer care hospitals, medical colleges and spreading the word through the internet.