‘Happy place’ for young cancer fighters

Seven-year-old Saranya squeals with joy as her feet touch the ground. Seated on a swing at the newlyinaugurated park at the Adyar Cancer Institute that has been her home for the last seven months, she readily accommodates four-year-old Kaushik, who has just finished a ride on the merry-go-round. The two are among the many children who receive treatment at the centre for different kinds of cancer. With their treatment spanning for six months and for some, 18 months, these children stay away from friends and school, deprived of the fun that outdoor play offers them. 

Happy Place is a step towards offering the muchneeded recreation for them, along with the treatment. Built at a cost of Rs 12 lakh, the play space has swings, a double-armed sliding board, merry-go-round etc., the park also has a bird house and colourful murals in the background in the celebrations area. Dotted with plants to keep insects at bay, the space is an interplay of greenery and bright colours. 

Inaugurating the park on Monday, actress Gautami said, “For everyone battling the disease, it is not just the physical strength but also the mental strength that aids them. These are children and they need a break and relief from the rigour of treatment and this place is going to be just that.”

While the ward is equipped with smart board lessons for children from LKG to Class 12, art and craft room and a Montessori system, the facilities are concentrated indoors, pointed out Dr E Vidhubala of the institute. 

She said, “This outdoor play area is therefore a welcome one.” Vidhubala added that leukaemia, most commonly knowns as acute lymphoblastic leukemia, is the commonest type of cancer among children. “The incidence is more among children. But the good news is it is easily curable, provided it is diagnosed at the earliest,” she said. With 45 beds in the paediatric ward and close to 150 patients visiting the day care treatment every day, the centre has patients from across the state and the country.