1,800 surgeries, a lifetime of saving lives and one last wish to meet Azharuddin

Doctor Mishil Parekh is an oncologist at the Reliance Foundation Hospital, Mumbai.

Hyderabad: Telangana Minorities Welfare Minister Mohammed Azharuddin on Wednesday, April 29, granted a dying doctor’s last wish — a meeting with the former India cricket captain who had been his childhood hero.

Dr Mishil Parekh, an oncologist at Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai, is himself battling cancer. Over a career spanning 1,800 surgeries, Parekh built a reputation treating bone and musculoskeletal tumours, trained at Tata Memorial Hospital, completed a fellowship at the University of Florida and went on to become one of India’s youngest musculoskeletal oncologists.

He has published in medical journals, worked in academics, and founded the Sarcoma Education Foundation.

Now on the other side of a diagnosis, Parekh reached out to Balaji Manohar, president of the Telangana Entrepreneurs Association, with a heartfelt note titled “Seeking Your Support for a Special Meeting – My Last Wish.”

Manohar arranged the meeting with Azharuddin, who captained India and remains one of the game’s most celebrated batsmen.

When Parekh finally stood before the minister, he was visibly emotional.