Celebration of the Cells, Letters from a Cancer Survivor by R.M. Lala
(A book review by Shivani Maheshwari)
This is a book that should be read by all, those affected by cancer as well as those untouched by it. For it makes inspirational reading not just for fighting and coping with the Big C but also on living life to the hilt. Russi M. Lala, an editor, publisher and author by profession, himself suffered from malignancy lymphoma, a form of cancer that affects the lymph nodes. He has written a moving account of his own experiences and how he drew upon all his mental and physical resources to combat and recover from it victoriously.
Celebrating the strength of each cell in our human body, Lala has written the book in the form of letters meant to prepare a friend, also diagnosed with cancer, for the rigours ahead of her. Through a simple, non-technical and personal style, he throws light on the nature of the disease and helps lighten the mood through humour, prayers and the vital self within.
The letters read like comforting advice from a patriarch, full of information and guidance, but never overbearing and didactic. The book has been essentially written to help patients with cancer understand, accept and withstand the physical, psychological and emotional problems arising from cancer and its treatment. Emphasis has been placed on faith in doctors and God, family and friends, nature and environmant, food and fruits, work and creativity, yoga and exercise, mind and attitude.
All 18 chapters of the book are generously woven with his own examples and experiences and those of patients he met during his treatment in India and abroad. Laying emphasis on the invaluable contribution of positive mental attitude, he narrates the case of a patient who had been told by his doctors that he had only five or six months to live. To tha surprise of his friends and realtives, the patient lived for many years after cancer was detected in him. In fact, he even outlived most of the doctors who were treating him.
Lala has divided the book into two parts. The first deals with the history of cancer, its development, its implications, its hard realities. I, for one, did not know that there are a hundred types of cancer, each requiring a different line of treatment. Besides which, factors like the individuals constitution, physical, emotional and mental, are of prime importance in the treatment. Remember the mind is very important in the conquest of cancer.
The second part of the book has motivational chapters titled Cultivate Joy, Prayer and Healing, Streams of Silence, the Doctor Within, all of which serve to prevent one from buckling under the pain and pressure. Quoting from a study conducted in America, Lala writes that the positive effect of laughter on the immune system has been clearly established.
Celebration of the Cells has an added advantage over other books because the author himself came fact to face with cancer and faught it valiantly with an upbeat spirit and mind. Secondly, his felicity with words has helped pour his thoughts out vividly and make the experience almost first hand for the reader.
Lala published his first book, A Creation of Wealth: A Tata Story to crtical and commercial acclaim in 1981. This was followed by Encounters with the Emminent, The Heartbeat of a Trust, In Search of Leadership. His books on the Tatas and particularly J.R.D. Tata got him maximum exposure.
Source: http://www.cpaaindia.org/infocentre/bookreview.htm#JOY