After three tangles with cancer, Aparna Suri finds joy in simple things – a snail crossing the road, the vibrant colours of a sunset, or the satisfaction of perfecting a new recipe.
These small pleasures and the support of her family and friends have become anchors in a life repeatedly upended by cancer, yet defined by resilience.
“You don’t have a choice when you have cancer. Being brave is the only way forward. You push through your fear,” says the 50-year-old Singapore resident, whose first diagnosis came at age 21, just 10 months into her marriage.
After her husband noticed a lump on her collarbone, a CAT scan revealed it to be Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph nodes.
“My first thoughts were ‘How can this be possible? I am too young to get cancer. Why me? Will I be able to have children?’” Suri says.