One of the questions I hear most often from parents is not, “Will my child survive?” It is, “Where will we stay tomorrow?”
That one question reveals a hidden reality of childhood cancer in India. For many families, the greatest challenge is not reaching a hospital. It is finding the strength and support to remain on treatment until the very end.
India has made remarkable progress in paediatric cancer care. Our doctors, nurses, hospitals and medical advancements have given thousands of children the opportunity to survive and thrive. Yet there is another battle taking place beyond the hospital walls, one that deserves far greater attention.
Families often travel hundreds of kilometres in search of treatment. What awaits them is not just a medical journey, but a test of endurance. Treatment can last months, sometimes years. During this time, parents struggle to find safe accommodation, nutritious food, reliable transportation and emotional support. Many are forced to give up their livelihoods while caring for their child. Slowly, the weight of these challenges becomes too much to bear.
Too often, families discontinue treatment not because medicine has failed, but because life outside the hospital becomes impossible to sustain.
Having walked alongside families through some of the most difficult moments of their lives, I have learnt that every family’s story is unique, yet the challenges they face are strikingly similar.
A father leaves behind his daily wage job because his child needs chemotherapy. A mother worries about the children she has left behind while caring for her sick child in a city she has never visited before. Families exhaust their savings, sell their jewellery or mortgage their land. They are not giving up. They are simply running out of the resources needed to keep going.
This is the hidden crisis in paediatric cancer care.
When we speak about strengthening childhood cancer care, we naturally think of hospitals, medicines and skilled doctors. They are the foundation of every successful outcome. But equally important is the support that enables families to complete treatment with dignity.
A child cannot recover without proper nutrition. Parents cannot make sound decisions when they are emotionally exhausted. Families cannot continue treatment if they have nowhere safe to stay or no reliable way to reach the hospital.
In our work at Access Life, we have seen how addressing these non-medical challenges changes outcomes. Through our centres, families receive accommodation, nutritious meals, transportation to and from hospitals, counselling, educational support and recreation, all within a caring community built on kindness. We do not replace hospitals. We complement them by helping families remain focused on what matters most: their child’s recovery.
The encouraging news is that no one is fighting this battle alone. Across India, doctors, nurses, hospital teams, social workers, non-profit organisations, corporate partners, volunteers, philanthropists and countless compassionate citizens are working together to ensure that children have the best possible chance of completing treatment. They may serve in different ways, but they are united by one purpose: Giving every child the opportunity to live a healthy future.
Every meal served, every safe bed provided, every ride to the hospital, every counselling session and every act of kindness reminds a family that they are not alone. Sometimes, that reassurance gives them the strength to return for one more appointment, one more cycle of treatment and one step closer to recovery.
India has both the expertise and the compassion to lead the way in holistic childhood cancer care. The more we raise awareness about the hidden reasons families abandon treatment, the faster we can remove those barriers. Every hospital strengthened, every non-profit supported, every volunteer inspired and every corporate that steps forward becomes part of the solution.
Childhood cancer is not a challenge that belongs only to hospitals or charities. It is a national responsibility that calls for all of us to stand together. If we continue to combine medical excellence with compassion, and pair hope and faith with collective action, we can build an India where no child loses the chance of a cure simply because their family could not afford the journey.
(The views expressed are personal)
This article is authored by Ankeet Dave, co-founder and director, Access Life Assistance Foundation.
