New Delhi: Actress and author Lisa Ray nipped cancer in the bud and emerged stronger as a survivor. In her latest piece for Humans Of Bombay, the star recalled her tough times on how she battled the deadly disease upon diagnosis and how her life changed for better. Lisa's post came on the sidelines of National Cancer Awareness Day which was marked on November 7.


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In a long interview post, Lisa Ray shared: "How are you still standing? Your red blood cell count is so low that you can go into cardiac arrest any moment!’ That's what my doctor said when she 1st saw my blood test report. I’d been experiencing fatigue for months. And a few tests later, another doctor said, ‘You’ve cancer of the plasma of the bone marrow.’ At that moment, for the 1st time in years, I stopped & took a breath. I’d always been on the go. But while a part of me lived on the red carpet, the other craved spiritual peace- extreme ends! Like, I wanted to write a book. It helped me connect with myself. But with work, I never got to do it. But Cancer changed things. My stem cell surgery felt like being close to death & being reborn. But it helped me appreciate the life I had. I remember writing a blog about what it’s like living with cancer. Since the stigma had been so bad in south asian cultures, coming out felt cathartic. People appreciated my honesty too. Somehow, we all found courage in acceptance. After my treatment, I once tried wearing a wig for a public event but I found it to be ridiculous. I told myself, ‘Remove it’ & went all bald. It was all over the headlines but more than that, it was the most liberating thing I’d ever done. But the media wasn’t always nice. After chemo, I was a part of a travel show with my hair short. I called it a ‘chemo cut.’ But the channel replaced me. They wanted a girl with ‘long’ hair. It was heartbreaking. But soon, I did go into remission only to relapse 3 years later. Things were different by then. I was getting married. I was shattered but I took it 1 day at a time. My body told me what to do & I listened. I went for a 3 week transformation program. I meditated, drank juices, ate sprouts, & introspected. I healed internally. And within months I beat cancer again & without the stem cell surgery! It’s been 9 years since then a lot has happened. I did more movies, wrote a book, raised cancer awareness, had kids, & did the unthinkable- found the courage to start an art platform! It’s ironic how a disease that usually brings the end to us changed my life completely & made me feel more alive than anything else ever did!” #NationalCancerAwarenessDay"



The beautiful actress battled cancer in 2009 and gave it a tough fight. However, it relapsed in 2012 after got married to her longtime beau Jason Dehni on October 20, 2012. She is a mother of twin daughters, Sufi and Soleil. She welcomed them via surrogacy.



On the work front, Lisa Ray played an important role in filmmaker Deepa Mehta's Water. She was seen in Kasoor, Veerappan and Dobaara. Lisa Ray starred in TV shows like Endgame, Top Chef Canada, Murdoch Mysteries, Blood Ties and Four More Shots Please!. The actress was last seen in Four More Shots Please! Season 3, co-starring Sayani Gupta, Bani J, Kirti Kulhari, Maanvi Gagroo, and Prateik Babbar.


The actress was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma on June 23, 2009. It's a cancer of the white blood cells known as plasma cells, which produce antibodies. It is a rare disease. In April 2010, Lisa announced that she was cancer-free, after a stem cell transplant.