Dr Shanta was the chairperson of Cancer Institute at Adyar in Chennai, who focused her expertise over half a century in trying to make cancer care affordable in the country has died of heart attack.
Some days ago, Dr V Shanta was upset with a former student when the latter broke to her that she was stepping down from active practice after a long and illustrious career as an oncologist. “She was really annoyed with me. She asked me how could I quit when at her age, she was still examining patients,”said Dr P P Bapsy, former HoD of Medical Oncology at Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, Bengaluru.
Born in 1927 in a family of achievers — both her maternal uncle S Chandrasekhar and maternal grandfather C V Raman are Nobel laureates.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narenda Modi tweeted, “Dr V Shanta will be remembered for her outstanding efforts to ensure top quality cancer care. The Cancer Institute at Adyar, Chennai, is at the forefront of serving the poor and downtrodden. I recall my visit to the Institute in 2018. Saddened by Dr. V Shanta’s demise. Om Shanti.”