A Patient’s Perspective on the Coimbatore Meeting – by Vijaykumar

A Support Group Meeting was held on Saturday, 20 July 2025 for CML and GIST patients in Coimbatore.

We spoke to Vijaykumar, FOM (Tamil Nadu) City Chapter Leader, to share his experience. He is a renowned cinematographer and Director of Photography (DOP) in South Indian films. Been a part of Friends of Max for over 20 years and a great inspiration for so many of us.

Here is what he had to say:

1. How do these gatherings impact individuals, and what emotions surface when connecting with the FOM Community?

It’s a great opportunity for all the patients to overcome their pain and struggles sharing them with other patients who truly understand. It provides mental support and strengthens our belief to survive when we share our common medical diagnosis and treatment experiences with each other.

2. Now it has been 20 years since we have been doing patient support group meetings. How do you think the meetings have evolved? What are the new changes in the discussions and workshops that you are seeing?

Definitely. The meeting has improved a lot in recent years, and more patients are attending the meetings compared to the early stages. A significant part of the meeting is the workshop that we are conducting during these meetings. It helps the patients to share their own experiences in day-to-day activities as well as with their families.

3. What would you like to see in future meetings?

This time around, at the Coimbatore meeting, we have conducted the BCRL tests for the patients, and to emphasize that it was done free of cost, it has benefited the patients most conveniently. In the future, we should come up with more similar ideas that would help the patients in the most effective manner.

4. In your experience with Support Group meetings, can you share a specific instance where you witnessed a notable impact or positive outcome for a patient?

Without doubt, the Q&A session with the most experienced doctors in the field clarifies the various doubts and queries of patients, and also their families about the CML. It also gives us hope by learning about the medical advancements in this field.