The
author is Dr. S. Khanna, (daughter of Mr. D.S. Khanna
and Mrs. Susheela Khanna), founder of Dharamshila
Cancer Foundation and Research Centre and founder
Director of Dharamshila Cancer Hospital and Research
Centre from 1994 till date.
Dr.
S. Khanna
BACKGROUND
HISTORY
Mr.
Dharam Swaroop Khanna was running a prosperous
business in Lahore from 1935 to 1947. At the time
of partition of the country into India and Pakistan,
he had to leave his business and property behind
to migrate to New Delhi, India as a refugee, the
fate that had befallen many a million people.
After great struggle and hardships, he restarted
his business from scratch and gradually built
it up with his three sons.
He
was in the business of making transmission belts,
conveyor belts and fan belts. He was enjoying good
health and a good quality life till June 1981 when
he suddenly developed urinary retention. Investigations
showed that he was suffering from prostate cancer
with wide-spread bony metastasis. The medical experts
treating him told the family consisting of his wife,
three sons and three daughters that his disease
was incurable.
While
other family members were stricken with grief, his
daughter, Dr. S Khanna, a practicing paediatrician,
could not come to terms with what she was told.
She contacted a cancer centre in Miami (USA), which
was doing exclusive research on prostate cancer
and carrying out various drug trials for patients
of prostate cancer. She wanted to put him on the
drugs on trial but did not get support from the
concerned medical specialists in Delhi and Mumbai.
Disgusted with the negative attitude of doctors
for cancer patients, she got the research protocols
and the drugs from Miami. Under the guidance of
Dr. Sridhar (Principal investigator at Miami), she
herself started trying various protocols on him.
He would respond to a particular protocol for 5-6
months and then the response would stop and new
protocol had to be started.
From
June 1981 to July 1986, Mr. D S Khanna was on various
investigational drug trials. He carried on with
a reasonably good quality of life and attended to
his business regularly. However, he developed a
pathological fracture (intertrochanteric) of the
left femur in July 1986 and no orthopedic surgeons
in Delhi wanted to operate on him. They considered
him a hopeless case who should be left alone without
any intervention. The pain was unbearable and his
quality of life had become very poor. Dr. Khanna
went from pillar to post seeking help from the medical
fraternity with great hope but no one was willing
to offer any hope. Finally he was operated on 16th
November, 1986 by Dr. Bavdekar of Mumbai, at Delhi
and it took him 6 months to get back on his legs
and to his office. His quality of life improved
considerably from November 1986 to July 1987. Gradually
he started deteriorating again and became totally
bed ridden.
He
was a great fighter and very positive thinker. He
wanted to live and was willing to undergo any treatment
or procedure, which would improve his quality of
life. He tried various alternative medicines like
Ayurvedic, homeopathy, herbal, magnetic, etc. Finally
he became one with the almighty on 7th January 1988.
On
his second death anniversary on Jan7, 1990, during
a YAJNA, the priest told his six children that it
was their duty to fulfill the unfulfilled wishes
of their father. It was at that time that it occurred
to Dr. S. Khanna that her father used to tell her
that he should be put under one roof, where all
facilities for cancer management are available.
It was from that day, that Dr. S. Khanna started
thinking seriously to have a dedicated comprehensive
cancer care centre in Delhi. The idea was discussed
within the family and friends and it was collectively
decided to register a NGO with the objective of
starting a state-of-the-art comprehensive cancer
care and research centre in Delhi. DHARAMSHILA CANCER
FOUNDATION AND RESEARCH CENTRE was registered on
19.4.1990 under the societies registration act XXI
of 1890 with the support of other relatives and
friends of cancer patients.
MEANING
OF DHARAMSHILA
DHARMA
means DUTY and SHILA means FOUNDATION. The founder
members of Dharamshila Cancer Foundation and Research
Centre (DCFRC) thought that it was their duty to
lay the foundation of a comprehensive cancer care
centre so that cancer patients could get complete
care under one roof.
