HYDERABAD: While Mandalapu Himaja, daughter of a telephone mechanic V Satyanarayana Murthy, was on cloud nine after securing the top marks in the agriculture and medicine stream, the celebrations of her close friend N Umamaheshwari who was behind her by just one mark, was a bit more subdued. The reason for the sober celebrations was because Uma’s father, N Nagi Reddy, a teacher in a government school, is suffering from cancer for the last two years. Uma, who was present along with her mother and maternal uncle at the function to receive a gold medal from her college, was missing her father who could not be there.“Of course it is a great occasion in my life but I was missing my father who is a patient and is taking bed rest. He was diagnosed with cancer two years ago and his health has deteriorated ever since. That is also the reason why I want to become an oncologist,” said Uma. With tear-filled eyes she recalled that by the time her father’s cancer was detected, his health had deteriorated. “Most people die due to lack of awareness about the disease and its treatment. I want to do a comprehensive study on the disease and create awareness among the people about it,” said the 17-year-old Uma.Uma’s friend Himaja, the topper who secured 158 marks, aims to become a neurologist. She recalls the days they spent in the same college in Vijayawada. “We often met and discussed the subjects and we used to compete among each other for more marks. I have learnt many learning techniques from her. She also helped me as I could not follow many topics since I come from Telugu medium. We hope we will achieve our dream of becoming doctors,” Himaja said.
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