I felt shaken, worried: Sonia Gandhi reveals two cancer scares, secret surgeries

Behind the political battles, public appearances and demands of leading the Congress, Sonia Gandhi was also battling serious health challenges -- two cancer scares that she kept away from public.

In Short

• Sonia Gandhi reveals breast cancer diagnosis, pancreatic growth
• She chose surgery in Italy to keep her illness private from Indian media
• Stress-related health issues worsened during her political career

For years, Sonia Gandhi's health remained largely shielded from public view, even as she navigated some of the most turbulent phases of her political life. In her newly released memoir, the Congress leader pulls back the curtain on a series of deeply personal medical ordeals, recounting how a breast cancer diagnosis in 2010 was followed by the discovery of a pancreatic growth a year later and the fear, uncertainty and difficult decisions that came with both.

Gandhi, who has rarely spoken publicly about her health, wrote on Belonging: A Journey of Love, that she had experienced occasional bouts of asthma, allergies and stomach problems but had no major health concerns before the breast cancer diagnosis. She also reflects on how the pressures of public life and politics coincided with worsening stomach disorders.

"Our second UPA term brought me some personal challenges. Apart from occasional bouts of asthma and allergies, I'd had no serious health troubles until then. As my doctors pointed out, stress is one of the main causes of stomach disorders, and, sure enough, these became frequent and worsened as I grew older and got drawn into politics myself," she writes.

BREAST CANCER DIAGNOSIS IN 2020

In 2010, Gandhi was advised to undergo surgery after doctors suspected breast cancer. She says she had complete faith in her medical team at Delhi's Sir Ganga Ram Hospital but was nevertheless deeply worried about the diagnosis and its possible consequences.

"Still, I felt shaken and worried; there was no time to lose, my children and I were told, and my mind began to race to a possible scary outcome," she recalls.

Concerned about media attention and the prospect of her private medical condition becoming public, Gandhi decided against undergoing treatment at Mumbai's Tata Memorial Hospital. Instead, she opted for surgery at the European Institute of Oncology outside Italy's Milan.

Gandhi wrote that she had always valued her privacy and found the possibility of her illness becoming a subject of public discussion deeply distressing.

"I had always sought to keep my personal space private, and the thought of my illness being discussed in the media was painful to me, even infuriating. True, I had become a public figure, but did that mean I wasn't to be allowed even a modicum of privacy?" she asked in the memoir.

Gandhi travelled for the surgery accompanied by a senior officer, her children Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, Priyanka's husband Robert Vadra, and her sisters Nadia and Anouchka. The operation was performed under the guidance of renowned surgeon Dr Umberto Veronesi.

Recalling the moments before the surgery, Gandhi describes how Rahul and Priyanka held her hand and kissed her forehead as she was wheeled into the operation theatre.

"On the day of the surgery, as I was wheeled into the operation theatre, Rahul and Priyanka held my hand and kissed me on the forehead, assuring me that all would be well," she wrote.

According to Gandhi, the surgeon removed two tumours, including one that was not considered suspicious but was taken out as a precaution. An intra-operative radiation procedure was also performed, sparing her five weeks of radiotherapy.

SECOND SCARE AFTER GROWTH IN PANCREAS

The ordeal was far from over. A year after her breast cancer surgery, a follow-up examination revealed another growth, this time in her pancreas. The discovery came as a shock to Gandhi and her family, who initially feared that the earlier cancer had returned.

"... We immediately thought it was a flare-up of the earlier problem. Following many consultations, my doctors felt that I needed immediate surgery. The tumour was initially suspected to be a neuroendocrine one: That would mean a long operation, and a prolonged hospital stay," she recollected.

Gandhi was subsequently referred to the Erasmus University Medical Centre in Rotterdam, where she was treated by pancreatic surgeon Dr Casper van Fijck.

Despite reassurances from her doctors and family, she says she remained anxious because the actual extent of the disease could only be established after the operation.

"I was agitated and worried about the operation in spite of everyone's reassurances, since the actual extent of the disease could only be determined after the surgery. My mind began to dwell on a worst-case scenario. What if it turned out to be a metastatic growth? Would I come through it?" she recalls.

This time, Gandhi kept the trip for surgery largely under wraps. She informed only then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and a few senior colleagues before leaving.

The surgery brought relief. Dr van Fijck subsequently explained that the tumour had been detected at an early stage and was in a preliminary precancerous condition.

"I had been fortunate the tumour was found to be in a preliminary precancerous stage, having been detected early," Gandhi wrote, recalling the doctor's assessment.

COLLAPSE DURING 2016 VARANASI RALLY

Gandhi also recounts another serious health scare in August 2016, when she collapsed during an election rally in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi.

She wrote that the road was packed with people on both sides, with crowds raising slogans in support of the Congress. However, the convoy continued for nearly five hours, and the mounting fatigue eventually took its toll.

Gandhi collapsed and was flown to Delhi for treatment.

Describing the experience, she recalls drifting in and out of consciousness during the flight and having a vision of her late husband, former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

"Floating in and out of consciousness, I saw him again – Rajiv, reaching out to me, smiling at me reassuringly as if to say, everything will be fine," she said in the book.

Sheila Dikshit, who was with Gandhi throughout the flight, later told her that she had suddenly smiled amid the tense situation. Gandhi believes the moment coincided with her vision of Rajiv.

However, the fall left her with a badly broken shoulder, necessitating another operation.

"Sheila Dikshit, who was by my side throughout, told me later that she noticed me suddenly smile in the middle of the tension-racked flight. I'm sure it must have been that moment. But I had broken my shoulder badly in the fall: another operation!" she recalls.

The 526-page memoir of Gandhi, who turns 80 next month, Belonging: A Journey of Love, was published by HarperCollins India and released on Tuesday.

The book traces the arc of her life, beginning with her childhood in post-war Italy and her marriage into the Nehru-Gandhi family. It also covers the assassination of her husband Rajiv Gandhi and her subsequent entry into politics.

The memoir offers an account of the personal challenges that unfolded alongside her political journey, including two cancer diagnoses, multiple surgeries and the difficulties of dealing with serious health concerns while remaining a prominent public figure.

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