Dear All,
This post travails the journey of my mother in her fight against her breast cancer & may be longish to my standard shorter posts. On the onset, I would like to thank all of my freinds, well wishers & family for their support & well-wishes during the entire process. My special thanks to my cousin (lilliput "Bittu) for his unflinched & unwavering support.
Last year had been a terrible & traumatising time (Dec'09 onwards) which continued till mid July'10. Till 8th Dec'09, I was in a exalted condition & had evey thing planned out like a good planner about my winter/ new year plans.......... but every thing went topsy turvy, yet again proving how gullible we can be at the hands of our fate....
I was itching for partying during the New year- christmas carnival time at Goa... having missed out the oppurtunity the previous year to party in Goa as my best friend Aphi was coming to India & I had to go to visit her (to Delhi).
To cut a long story short, I had planned for a small get-away holiday in Goa with another of my good friend (Irene) & her cousin. They were from Shillong & were supposed to come to my place via Guwahati - Mumbai - baroda. We were supposed to leave for Goa by train from Baroda & head straightway to the hotel at Calungate (that I booked online instead of booking our company's guest house). But Lady Moirae had a different plan for me & us.
On 8th December'09 evening, I was with Dhruti & Imran at Ellora park discussing "Global warming" when my brother called up from home & delivered the biggest blow (BB).... well it was the first of the oncoming BB.... that my mom has been detected with a lump in one of her breast..... any ninny can tell you that its not good news at her age. The Agartala doc immediately recommended the oncology Deptt for further procedural check-ups/ biopsy etc.
I told them immediately to come over my place so that I could take them to TMC, Mumbai. They came on 15th Dec & we headed the same day to Mumbai. Upon the advice of my office colleagues Anurag & Sriniwas Sir, I took the appointment of Dr. SH Advani (revered by many as the best onco doc of India) for 17th Dec.
We showed up on the appointed day in the basement of Jaslok hospital where Dr. Advani has his chamber. He prescribed for some tests & was in his afflable best in order to alleviate our fears & give the much required moral boost (for which I am still thankful). For the next 2-days , they did a battery of tests on her frail body & finally when we showed up at Dr. Advani's chamber with the reports, he told us to get admitted the next day.
So, we moved her to the hospital on 22nd Dec. MRM (Modified radical masectomy) was done upon her on 24th Dec'09 wherein the tumour & her breast was removed in one go..... the entire operation was for nearly 5 & 1/2 hours. For the next 8-9 days that we were in the hospital (with me & my brothers alternating between hospital to Guest house at Parel), it was a painful healing process for my mother. My cousin brother also toiled hard given the fact that he had his final term exams breathing on his neck. I still feel guilty that had it not been for us, he would have cleared all his papers that sem.
In the meanwhile, some more bad news followed me prior to my mom's operation. The day my mom was supposed to get admitted to hospital, Joe (Irene's bro-in-law) rang up from Shillong to deliver the Second biggest blow. I had talked with Irene some few days back ( on 18-19th Dec'09) and had cajoled her to take the flight some how & come down to Mumbai. I had told my cousin to pick them from Airport & drop them to railway station for Vadodara train. On reaching Vadodara, my friend would have picked them up & taken to my house where malatidi was there. I had kept our train tickets & hotel tickets with her. They just had to catch the evening train from Vadoara & voila, they would have atleast had a decent holiday sans me.
Irene was not keeping well for some days & was hospitalised in a nursing home/ clinic. Doc. told it was low BP (a severe poor diagnosis). Inspite of her health problem, she was really eager to come over to my place. So, I had the second biggest blow when Joe informed me that Irene had brain heamorrage & is in ICU. Within 2days, she left all of us. It was real hard as the sameday, my mom was to be admitted in hospital. I was shattered & worst of all I had no time to grieve for her & our friendship which had survived the test of time. It was nearly a decade we were supposed to meet. So, my dear Irene, maybe Lady Moirae wont spoil our chance / next time when we will get to meet in our afterlife, if there is any.
