A Support Group Meeting was held on Saturday, 13 September 2025 for CML and GIST patients in Pune at the Cancer Center, Ruby Hall Clinic.
We spoke to Milan Hakani, FOM (Pune) City Chapter Leader, to share his experience.
Here is what he had to say:
“On the morning of the 13th, Trupti (FOM Pune City Chapter Leader and my wife) and I were talking about how we felt an unusual sense of positivity — perhaps because it was the day when all of us, the Pune City Chapter Leaders, were coming together for one of the most rewarding roles we have: being part of a Patient Support Group Meeting.”
“This time, patients in Pune were especially fortunate to have a second support group meeting within just 8 months, and with additional unique features like free blood tests. For this we are grateful to our sponsors, Avantor, for their support.”
How do these gatherings impact individuals, and what emotions surface when connecting with the FOM Community?
I feel privileged to have attended more than 10 Support Group Meetings across Pune, Mumbai, Aurangabad, and Nashik. Each meeting is unique, shaped by the diversity of patients in that region.
Although these are group meetings, they profoundly impact individuals on a personal level. Patients who once came burdened with fear about their disease often leave feeling fearless, confident, and better informed. They learn about their condition, treatment, and remedies — gaining the strength to live life with hope and dignity.
Importantly, they also discover a sense of belonging. Regardless of where they come from they feel they are part of one special community: the FOM CML Community.
The most common emotions we witness in these meetings is an immense amount of confidence, fearlessness and gratitude to The Max Foundation and friends of Max.
2. Now it has been 20 years since we have been organising 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?
It is not easy to sustain these meetings for over 20 years across various locations, and yet they continue to thrive because of their value. The core purpose has always been to provide 360° support to CML and GIST patients.
At our recent Pune meeting the following were included:
· A session in clinical psychology which helped patients overcome the fear of treatment
· Doctors like Dr. Ramanan, Dr. Chakor, and Dr. Bahite provided vital knowledge about medication, side effects, and other aspects of CML
· Free blood tests, including costly ones like BCR-ABL offered financial relief to patients
These meetings not only provide medical knowledge but also create a family-like environment where no patient feels alone. The strong attendance of close to 100 participants at this meeting itself shows how impactful these gatherings have become.
3. What would you like to see in future meetings?
In the future, I would like to see greater intercity exchange, where patients from different cities attend meetings together. This would help participants realize the vastness of the CML community and benefit from sharing diverse experiences.
Going forward, in addition to medical discussions, I feel it would be valuable to include sessions on career building, current affairs, and their impacts, to further empower patients.
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?
At the meeting during the storytelling session, we heard the inspiring journey of Archana, who was diagnosed with CML while in her first year of college. Despite immense challenges, she overcame them and is now a talented artist creating portraits and rangolis.
Her story touched everyone deeply. Over 80 patients in the room felt motivated, fearless, and determined to live life with dignity.
I have witnessed similar transformations at every meeting — patients who arrive stressed and fearful often leave stronger, more confident, and more hopeful.
This is the true outcome of the knowledge, answers, and motivation they gain from these gatherings.
From my experience of attending many support group meetings in different locations, I can confidently say this is one of the best ways to support patients and their families living with cancer. The popularity and growing participation in these meetings itself speaks of their usefulness and importance.
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