"It never even occurred to me," says the 49-year-old London-based Alka Bagri, still puzzled as to why she never went for a checkup knowing her family history of cancer. Nine years ago, Alka became the 24th person in her family to be diagnosed with breast cancer. "My cockiness about my health was crushed," she says.
The Week that Was
Feeling a lump in her breast one day, she paid a visit to her GP, who advised her to consult a breast specialist. An ultrasound and a mammogram revealed a cyst and a biopsy confirmed malignancy. In addition, there were about four patches on her breast, which showed a pre-cancerous change. "Before the doctor could finish, my husband keeled over and fainted," laughs Alka. "I was shell-shocked. All I wanted was to get the cancer out of my body, right then." Mastectomy was scheduled for the following week. Wanting to be both physically and mentally prepared, she went on a fruit diet that week, and her yoga teacher from Coimbatore helped her still her straying mind by practising suryanamaskar and shavasana.
The Battle
She refused to let her body become a war zone, instead she accepted the situation with calm and thought through how to deal with it. The surgery-mastectomy and reconstruction- took seven hours. After that Alka took up meditation instead of popping painkillers. "Within five days, I was up and running about in the park," she says. But her challenges had only just begun. Alka went through six rounds of aggressive chemotherapy- because of the family history, doctors did not want to leave anything to chance. It left her nauseous and weak but she found a way to cope. "I practiced meditation and that helped me rise above my pain. It may sound terribly cliched, but I was able to experience it," she explains. As luck would have it, her mother too was diagnosed with breast cancer and Alka decided to have her second breast removed to cut further risk. It didn't end there, four years later came another blow. "When you have breast cancer, your entire reproductive system becomes susceptible," she explains. Hysterectomy and the removal of her ovaries followed. "I learnt to see the funny side of the illness. It takes the sting out of it."
The Winner
Today, Alka stands strong and radiant despite all that she has been through and she attributes it largely to her positive outlook and her support system-her friends and family. "It has made me a better person. Overnight, my husband and I grew up. One brush with mortality can teach you to value life," she says. Now, as a mom of two grown-up daughters, Alka follows a strict diet and exercise regimen. She religiously wakes up at 4:30 every morning and does a mix of yoga, cardio and martial arts until 9 am. Her passion for life is infectious. Back in London, she plans to turn her thesis on Pahadi art into a book. She also intends to continue learning Urdu, which she took up during her chemo sessions. "You know what," she confesses with a smile, "I would rather have a short but well-lived and meaningful life," By the looks of it, she is living every moment of her life.
The Week that Was
Feeling a lump in her breast one day, she paid a visit to her GP, who advised her to consult a breast specialist. An ultrasound and a mammogram revealed a cyst and a biopsy confirmed malignancy. In addition, there were about four patches on her breast, which showed a pre-cancerous change. "Before the doctor could finish, my husband keeled over and fainted," laughs Alka. "I was shell-shocked. All I wanted was to get the cancer out of my body, right then." Mastectomy was scheduled for the following week. Wanting to be both physically and mentally prepared, she went on a fruit diet that week, and her yoga teacher from Coimbatore helped her still her straying mind by practising suryanamaskar and shavasana.
The Battle
She refused to let her body become a war zone, instead she accepted the situation with calm and thought through how to deal with it. The surgery-mastectomy and reconstruction- took seven hours. After that Alka took up meditation instead of popping painkillers. "Within five days, I was up and running about in the park," she says. But her challenges had only just begun. Alka went through six rounds of aggressive chemotherapy- because of the family history, doctors did not want to leave anything to chance. It left her nauseous and weak but she found a way to cope. "I practiced meditation and that helped me rise above my pain. It may sound terribly cliched, but I was able to experience it," she explains. As luck would have it, her mother too was diagnosed with breast cancer and Alka decided to have her second breast removed to cut further risk. It didn't end there, four years later came another blow. "When you have breast cancer, your entire reproductive system becomes susceptible," she explains. Hysterectomy and the removal of her ovaries followed. "I learnt to see the funny side of the illness. It takes the sting out of it."
The Winner
Today, Alka stands strong and radiant despite all that she has been through and she attributes it largely to her positive outlook and her support system-her friends and family. "It has made me a better person. Overnight, my husband and I grew up. One brush with mortality can teach you to value life," she says. Now, as a mom of two grown-up daughters, Alka follows a strict diet and exercise regimen. She religiously wakes up at 4:30 every morning and does a mix of yoga, cardio and martial arts until 9 am. Her passion for life is infectious. Back in London, she plans to turn her thesis on Pahadi art into a book. She also intends to continue learning Urdu, which she took up during her chemo sessions. "You know what," she confesses with a smile, "I would rather have a short but well-lived and meaningful life," By the looks of it, she is living every moment of her life.
