FDA approves first use of novel immune system drug for cancer

The Japanese art of Kintsugi is not only about repairing valuable broken ceramics with lacquer and gold, it celebrates the history of the breakage and repair which increases the value of the piece manifold. Nilanjan Bandyopadhyay, a great admirer of Japanese culture, celebrates the greatest accident of his life – Thyroid Cancer, the challenges of which he has endured over 26 years and counting. A special officer of Rabindra-Bhavana, Visva Bharati, Nilanjan is a respected scholar, writer, and…

66-वर्षीय राजेश शाह को मूत्राशय में स्टेज 2 कैंसर का निदान मिला, जिस के तुरंत बाद उन्हें एक लंबी सर्जरी करानी पड़ी। सर्जरी सफल रही और अब वे 6 साल से अधिक समय से सामान्य जीवन जी रहे हैं। इस लेख में वे जीवन के प्रति अपने दृष्टिकोण और स्टोमा बैग के साथ रहने के अपने अनुभव के अलावा अन्य बातों के बारे में भी बात करते हैं कृपया हमें अपनी वर्तमान स्थिति के बारे में बताएं। मुझे मूत्राशय कैंसर का निदान दिया गया था। इसे हटाने के लिए मैंने करीब साढ़े 6 साल पहले अपना ऑपरेशन करवाया था। मैं अब बिल्कुल स्वस्थ…

Rajesh Shah, 66 was diagnosed with Stage 2 cancer in the urinary bladder and soon after underwent a prolonged surgery. The surgery was successful, and he is leading a normal life now for more than 6 years. He talks about his attitude towards life and his experience of living with a stoma bag, among other things. Please tell us about your present condition. Can you describe it? I was diagnosed with bladder cancer. But I had my operation about 6 and a half years back to remove it. I’m absolutely…

डॉ मैरी अब्राहम  दर्द और प्रशामक (उपशामक / पेलिएटिव केयर )देखभाल चिकित्सक (पेन एण्ड पेलिएटिव केयर फिज़िशन), और डॉ वंदना वी प्रकाश, नैदानिक मनोवैज्ञानिक (क्लीनिकल साइकालजिस्ट) इस लेख में बताती हैं कि कैंसर के दर्द का इलाज किया जा सकता है और कैंसर के रोगी की जीवन की गुणवत्ता को उपयुक्त दवाओं द्वारा बढ़ाया जा सकता है। वे इस से संबंधित अनेक प्रश्नों के उत्तर साझा करती हैं। कैंसर के दर्द पर अधिक ध्यान दिए जाने के बावजूद,  यह दर्द अभी भी कैंसर रोगियों और उत्तरजीवियों (सर्वाइवर) के लिए एक…

While fever is a normal response to infection, fever during cancer treatment needs to be taken seriously since the body’s immunity is compromised. Read on to understand how cancer treatment impacts immune systems, fever. Fever or pyrexia is a higher body temperature than normal. It may be due to an infection from bacteria, virus, fungus, parasite or even inflammation due to a disease or trauma. Fever is caused by substances called pyrogens. Contrary to what one may believe, fever is a good…

Concerns regarding sexual health are quite common among patients who have undergone cancer treatment, but rarely are these concerns addressed by their medical care team. Most patients are shy or embarrassed to bring it up and even made to feel guilty about raising them, while they are trying to fight cancer. We spoke to Dr Prasad Raj Dandekar, consultant radio-oncologist who talked to us about the need for cancer patients to openly discuss their sexual health with their doctor to navigate…

Vandana Mahajan, a palliative care counselor, was diagnosed with thyroid cancer 15 years ago. She lost both her thyroid and parathyroid glands after cancer surgeries. In discussion with PatientsEngage, she reflects on her challenging journey and how her cancer diagnosis ultimately led her to find her identity. What were the initial symptoms that you experienced, and how did that lead to the diagnosis you received? In 2009, at the age of 36, I was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. Two years prior…

Kidney cancer is not a well known cancer. People hardly talk about it. According to GLOBOCAN 2022, yearly incidence of kidney cancer in India is 17,480 with 5 year prevalence of 1.4% per 1 lac population. Number of deaths are 9897. This indicates that patients come in late and if they came early, they would have better chance of survival. Let us go through some frequently asked questions about kidney cancer in this article. What is kidney cancer? Kidney cancer is any cancer that affects the…

Bladder cancer is the 10th common cancer worldwide. In India it is often diagnosed late due to limited awareness of bladder cancer and its symptoms. Let us understand the symptoms of bladder cancer, the diagnostic tests, the treatment options and some commonly asked questions about bladder cancer treatment, prognosis and effect on quality of life.   What is bladder cancer? Urinary bladder is a muscular organ situated in the pelvic cavity. Its primary function is to store urine produced by…

31-year-old Shourabh Vittalmurthy was diagnosed with fibromatosis in 2016, and subsequently spindle cell sarcoma in 2022 and 2023. He shares his journey as a cancer survivor to show how adopting a positive mindset and staying resilient has been his guiding light through each challenging chapter. When was the cancer first diagnosed? The first occurrence of cancer was in 2016. I was pursuing my Masters in Manipal, India. A lump the size of a football, started growing out of my scapular region. I…