Ira Dave

How do we bring treatment to India for less known conditions for which education and treatment options in India are sparse yet the patient population potentially affected is in millions? One such condition is "lymphedema" which is caused by impaired/damaged lymphatic system in your body due to reasons such as cancer treatment, filariasis, trauma, etc. It manifests with significant pain, swelling, infection susceptibility over time that negatively affects the quality of life. My Mom, a two-time cancer survivor is inflicted by Lymphedema. She was diagnosed in the US. When she headed back to India, we found no treatment options for her. She had severe pain in her arm and chest due to lymph accumulation. She could not raise her arm. There are millions of cancer patients that are at risk of lymphedema and even more with the much prevalent filariasis (caused by mosquito bite) in India. But, there is hardly any treatment. So, Jaydeep and I founded a non-profit organization in the US with the goal to raise awareness, educate health professionals and patients, increase treatment accessibility and promote outreach. Over the three years we have had several awareness programs and have successfully completed India's first ever, LANA (US) accredited comprehensive lymphedema treatment training. The journey has been tough but very fulfilling and encouraging. Reach out to us to learn what we learned...