A few thoughts....

How long will I be alive?  The first question that strikes a person who gets to know that he has cancer.

Cancer, a critical illness, is not an infection.  Cancerous cells multiply faster than the normal cells too.  It is unfortunate that complete cure for all forms of cancer has not yet be discovered (indirectly meaning it has been found for some forms of it).  Surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy are the normal forms of treatment and it depends on the part of the human body affected.

Cancerous cells started growing within my brain.  I too was disappointed.  I read a line written in place of a hospital name 'CANCER IS NOT FATAL' and it gave me some mental strength, no doubt.

I CAN SIR

I had written an article and it got published in the The Hindu - A cancer survivor's testimony of the battle and got a number of responses from the readers.  MANY RESPONSES WERE FROM CANCER SURVIVORS.  And most of them had their treatment more than five years ago.  Few of them had undergone treatment before ten years ago.  Reading those replies have made me more confident.

Those diagnosed with cancer, let us face treatment bravely, and remember the life we will have after it.  Let us forget that it is malignant and concentrate on daily life.  It is with that in mind that I have completed this blog.

For others, this is to create an awareness.  I also request you to avoid using substances that are clearly marked as carcinogenic.

I request survivors to respond to this blog, to encourage others and boost ourselves too.  You could also write a blog and share the link :-)

An Introduction

Myself, at my sister's wedding in 2014

I am Chitra, a software engineer working in Bangalore, India.

Until I was twenty nine, I did not have seizures and all that I knew about it is what was 'fits' shown in cinema - a person whose one hand and a leg stretch back and forth with froth coming out of his/her mouth, give an iron key and they would get alright within minutes.

Four years ago, I had seizures.  After taking oral medication for about fourteen months, an MRI was taken which disclosed the fact that there was a tumor in my brain.  The tumor was malignant - glioma grade III.  This blog is about the symptoms faced, the initial treatment given, the MRI that was taken fourteen months after my first consultation with the neuro physician, the surgery and the treatment I underwent, and how I have recuperated now and back to my normal work life.

The purpose of this blog is to provide an awareness of symptoms of epilepsy (seizures), the importance of certain medical examinations that doctors ask us to undergo, the improvements in the medical field and certain attitudes in close ones that a person affected by critical illness requires, to get him/her back to routine life. I also want to focus on the confidence and the positive attitude that a patient with a critical illness has to acquire to return to normalcy. 

Since I am not in the field of medicine, kindly excuse me if any medical terms are incorrect.  Please mention them in comments.

Here is the link to my article 'A cancer survivor's testimony of battle' that got published in a newspaper - The Hindu, which helped me identify my writing skills.

Please keep reading.
Compiled on: 16-06-2014

The Onset of Seizures - Unspoken words heard and stationery things moving

Seizure (commonly known as 'fits' / 'convulsions') symptoms are of different types, depending on the area of the brain affected.  Below, I have explained the onset of seizures that I experienced.  My tumour was in the left frontal region of the brain.

The year 2009 was difficult - chaotic, regular delayed sleep, forcing me to make a crucial decision by November.  I did have a minor neurological disorder that June, which I am unable to recollect, however, at that point in time, I was afraid to consult a neurophysician, partially because of my mistaken attitude that only those mentally unfit consult them !!

In the first week of December 2009, when I was returning from office by an auto there was a minor accident  The auto jumped upon a bumper and fell on the road.  I was hurt in both my kneecaps and cannot remember the moment I fell down.  This might not have had an impact on my nervous system though.

In January 2010, I felt a different taste at the middle of tongue.  This generally used to happen soon after after I woke up, during bath, so felt that it may be because of empty stomach.  Anyway, the taste was unusual and I felt it almost everyday.  I did not consider it an issue at all.

I had some personal issues and my parents were staying with me in a rented house.   Father used to be in Palakkad and managed to spend couple of weeks with us each month.

Slowing a couple more symptoms started showing up.  Things that were stationery were found moving by eyes, only for a few seconds.  After that time, I would realize that it was, where it was.  My desk in office faces the wall.  I would suddenly hear those around me, talk about me, for some duration (not sure, seconds or minutes) and then after that period of time, would realize that each colleague was immersed in his or her work only.  I could not decide whether my personal issues were disturbing me but did not want to disclose this to my parents either.

At Taj Mahal, March 2010, with my sister

I had been to our Cafeteria with a couple of friends an evening for a cup of tea.  I remember getting the same hearing sickness that day.  The most embarrassing feel here is, I do not know what I would have looked like, or what I would have done, while was experiencing this sickness.  I could not help it.

Slowly I started stammering for words,  this happened especially when I discussed my personal life with my close friend, she noticed something goes wrong when me and thought that I had some issue when we discussed this topic.  She suggested me to meet her family doctor who could guide me on this issue.

My mother is a diabetic and has high blood pressure.  I did not want her to know my symptoms as she would get disturbed.  In the first place, I was not clear with what was happening to me.  I was not convinced that I was mentally affected by my personal issues, what was happening was a puzzle to myself.