John McCain should be our hero!

Those to whom this name is not quite familiar, and might wonder why I have chosen to write about him, read on.

John McCain is an American Republican senator (does not matter any more) who was an aspirant for the high office (would it have mattered if he had won), who is battling brain cancer and expects to die in the near future.

I am not writing about him merely for his medical condition, but I need to share some medical facts to justify this column. He was rather abruptly and rudely diagnosed to be suffering from a brain tumor about a year ago. A surgery on his brain showed it to be an aggressive form of brain cancer called glioblastoma.

Treatment of this condition comprises an attempt to remove the tumor by surgery, followed by radiation and chemotherapy, but despite the best of what is available today, the median survival time for patients remains about fifteen months.

He has therefore joined the ranks of senator Ted Kennedy (a democrat) and the son of Joe Biden (democrat American vice president) who have been some of the many victims of this lethal disease.

But the real issue why I am writing about John McCain is not his brain cancer but the candid and bold attitude with which he and his family have accepted the inevitability of his condition, discussed the road ahead and even drawn up the plan and list of invitees they expect at his funeral! In fact, what caught my attention was the “news” of his writing to the White House refraining the president from attending his funeral.

There are two strong reasons why I found all this heroic. First, unlike many who like to keep their medical condition wrapped in secrecy, McCain has chosen to talk about it and share it with the public. He admits that he hates to leave, but went on to say “The world is a fine place and worth the fighting for and I hate very much to leave it. But I don’t have a complaint. Not one. It’s been quite a ride.”

And what I found so appealing in the manner in which he has accepted his fate, is the sharp contrast with the way I see most Indians accepting their ends, despite the rich philosphical and religious heritage that we like to brag about.

I say this as a doctor who sees a large number of patients hovering around the final exit door with a variety of illnesses. Most, or atleast the kin of most, seem unwilling and unprepared to face, accept, and discuss the issue of death. Relatives, fearful of “shocking” their loved ones, prefer to persist with the daily lying ritual “all will be fine” instead, that I am sure begins to ring hollow in the ears of even the patient!

Why do we convert death, that is sometimes so inevitable and close, into a medical emergency, a doctor-blame game and graceless event?