Delhiites walk to mark cancer day

NEW DELHI - Hundreds of people, including cancer survivors, participated in a walk Sunday to mark World Cancer Day which was observed two days ago.

Organsied by NGO CanSupport, the walk aimed to sensitise people about the growing threat of cancer and the need to face this challenge by aiding the growth of services that help people cope with the aftermath.

Among those who walked were former US ambassador David Mulford and his wife Jeannie, a cancer survivor; Terhi Hakala, Finland’s ambassador and another cancer survivor; Timothy J. Roemer, the present US ambassador and his wife; Mexican ambassador Jaime Nualart; and Syeda Hameed, member of the Planning Commission.

Discuss player Krishna Poonia, who won a gold in the October Commonwealth Games, also took part in the walk.

“The kind of work done by organisations like CanSupport in the field of palliative care is commendable. It’s good to see people in Delhi turning up in such large numbers,” she said.

A special vintage car and a motorbike rally which carried the cancer survivors was one of the attractions of the walk.

While most walked through the route in Chanakyapuri in south Delhi, there were others who jogged, driving home the message that exercise helps fight cancer.

Reading out a message from Gursharan Kaur, wife of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Harmala Gupta of CanSupport said: “The time is coming when with the help of science we shall be able to unravel cancer’s terrible secrets.

“Till then, let us work together to arm ourselves with information, to create services to help those affected and to reach out with our hearts.”