Amid Corona, don't forget the other big C

This picture has been used for representation purpose

On Thursday, veteran actor Rishi Kapoor died at a city hospital after a two-year battle with cancer. He had spent several months in the US for treatment.

A day before that, actor Irrfan Khan died after being admitted to a Mumbai hospital following a colon infection. The superlative actor too, had been diagnosed with a neuroendocrine tumour two years ago and had sought treatment in the UK.

The death of the two Bollywood stalwarts throws all the pain and suffering of cancer into sharp relief. It hammers home the message that while the world and with it the news outlets are consumed with vaccine trials for Coronavirus and possible cures, we still have to find a cure for cancer. We have made great strides in the battle against cancer, and continue to do so. Yet, every death is a sobering reminder that for so many years, a definitive cure for cancer continues to elude us. Some experts claim that we may never find that one remedy that makes cancer go away.

Caretakers whose eyes brim with tears as they live with a loved one afflicted with cancer and the sufferers themselves long and hope that a cure may come in their lifetime.

Meanwhile, we may become even more adept at managing cancer, so much so that the big C loses its sting.

With that to ponder on, one hopes that cancer patients are getting timely care in these times, that chemotherapy patients are able to access medical centres, talk to doctors, and health facilities remain especially careful as their patients' immunity is already compromised to some degree. In these dark times, where Coronavirus statistics take centre stage, let us not forget that the combat against the other big C still goes on. The Emperor of Maladies may have met its match in terms of management but more power and wings to the search for a cure for that C too.

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