Navi Mumbai : Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai organised a Blood Cancer Survivor Support Group Meeting to highlight the importance of early detection and evolving treatment approaches in blood cancers. The session brought together leading specialists, patients, and survivors, fostering meaningful dialogue around diagnosis, treatment, and long-term care.
The session was led by Dr Punit Jain, Sr Consultant – Haematology, Haemato-Oncology, Bone Marrow Transplant (BMT) & CAR T-cell Therapy, and Dr Vipin Khandelwal, Sr Consultant – Paediatric Haemato-Oncology & BMT. The discussion addressed critical gaps in early diagnosis and access to care, while also spotlighting advancements in next-generation therapies. It further emphasised the growing need for structured survivorship care in both paediatric and adult blood cancer patients.
Speaking at the event, Dr Punit Jain said, “One of the biggest challenges in blood cancers is delayed diagnosis due to symptoms that are often mistaken as routine illness. Early detection can significantly improve survival rates, and with India witnessing rapid progress in advanced therapies such as bone marrow transplant, CAR T-cell therapy and immunotherapy, outcomes are improving significantly, offering real hope even in complex and relapsed cases.”
The conversation also moved beyond treatment to focus on survivorship and life after cancer. Dr Vipin Khandelwal added, “Survival is no longer the only goal, ensuring a good quality of life after treatment is equally important. There should be a need for structured long-term follow-up, monitoring of late effects, and psychosocial support for both children and their families.”
The discussion was anchored by compelling case studies that highlighted the changing landscape of oncology, where there’s a hope for even high-risk and relapsed cancers.
In one such case, a 54-year-old woman diagnosed with Philadelphia chromosome-negative B-cell Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia (B-ALL) presented with a severe infection and later relapsed during immunotherapy. She was treated with a stepwise approach including chemotherapy, immunotherapy and CAR T-cell therapy, despite multiple complications. One year post-treatment, she is in complete remission with a good quality of life, highlighting the impact of advanced therapies in managing relapsed blood cancers. Such advanced immunotherapies including complex bone marrow transplants have helped improve survival rates in a lot of patients at Apollo Hospitals, Navi Mumbai.
In another case, a 6-year-old child diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) battled not one, but two relapses, with a guarded prognosis after the second recurrence. After initial treatment and first relapse management at a leading national cancer centre, the family turned to Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai for advanced care during the second relapse. Despite severe complications including infection, low immunity, and critical blood parameters, the team led by Dr Vipin Khandelwal initiated salvage therapy with targeted treatment followed by haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplant using father as a donor. Doctors aimed for cure rather than palliative care. Today, the child is in complete remission for over 200 days, marking a significant milestone in a case that once carried limited hope. This case highlights a critical shift in cancer care even in relapsed paediatric blood cancers, curative outcomes are now possible with timely intervention and advanced therapies.
Through such initiatives, Apollo Hospitals Navi Mumbai aims to strengthen awareness around early diagnosis, and promote a holistic approach to cancer care treatment in India that extends beyond treatment to provide quality of life.
