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NORTH AMERICAN Newsline AUGUST 14, 2026 | The Indian Eye 30

Where Compassion Meets Cancer Care

Experience and journey of a young Indian-American in Mumbai

SPECIAL FEATURE
By Raam Krishnan
n a narrow road in Mumbai,
just across from one of India’s
Olargest cancer hospitals, a small
storefront sits between aging concrete
walls and steady traffic. Sandals rest
outside the door. Inside, Anand Clin-
ic consists of a single room — white
walls, plastic chairs, a desk, and metal
shelves stacked with grocery packets.
There are no examination tables,
no IV stands, no white coats. Instead,
there are lentils, protein flour, oil, and
carefully assembled food kits waiting
to be handed to families who have
already spent everything just to reach
the city.
For thousands of cancer patients
who travel to Mumbai each year, the
most urgent cost is not only chemo-
therapy, but sustaining the body itself.
The Journey to Mumbai
Many families who arrive come
from rural regions across India — Ma-
harashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar
Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha,
West Bengal, Assam, and the North-
east. In their villages, access to diagnos-
tic care is limited. Symptoms are often
ignored until they become unbearable.
Cancer remains stigmatized in
many communities. Some believe it
is contagious; others see it as punish-
ment. Families frequently hide diagno-
ses out of fear. hospital bills,” says Mehul Doshi, who runs Anand Clinic.
Many patients come from ex- “But very few give them grocery or meal support.”
tremely poor backgrounds. Daily wage Even a small slum dwelling near the hospital can cost
laborers may earn the equivalent of ₹6,000–₹7,000 per month (roughly $70–$85 USD). Treat-
one to two dollars a day. Others de- ment often lasts six to twelve months. As money runs out,
pend on small landholdings — some- the first thing to collapse is diet.
times less than half an acre — that Chemotherapy reduces hemoglobin. Surgery weakens
barely sustain a household. When ill- tissue. Recovery demands protein. Yet most families can
ness strikes, income disappears almost only afford basic staples like rice and wheat.
immediately. A family member must This is the gap Anand Clinic fills.
travel with the patient to Mumbai, The grocery kits provided by the clinic are designed not
eliminating a second source of income. just for the patient, but also for the family member who has
Whatever savings exist are quick- traveled with them — someone who must survive in the city chemists. When patients were too weak to travel, they needed
ly exhausted. Jewelry is sold. Land is without income. funds just to reach the hospital. Many could not afford rent.
mortgaged. Livestock is given up sim- An Accidental Beginning These everyday needs, invisible within the hospital sys-
ply to reach the hospital. Doshi never intended to start anything. tem, often determined whether treatment could continue.
By the time many families arrive, “I never planned this,” Doshi says. “It just happened.”
they are already financially broken. As a teenager, he donated blood regularly. Years later,
he was asked to donate platelets for a cancer patient. Re- A Platform, Not a Charity
The Hidden Gap luctant at first, he eventually agreed. Anand Clinic operates on a simple but unusual model.
While trusts and charitable pro- He returned again and again — ultimately donating It does not collect money. Instead, it functions as a di-
grams often help cover hospital bills, platelets 294 times. During one patient’s treatment, he be- rect platform between donor and patient. Donors purchase
basic survival is left unaddressed. gan to notice something deeper. The issue was not just hos- groceries themselves and bring them to the clinic, where
“Many trusts help them manage pital bills. Families needed money for medicines from local Continued on next page... >>

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