Patient and physician stories
(GIPAP) (Glivec International Patient Assistance Program) patients visited the Novartis offices in Mumbai, India to show their support for and thanks to the company on February 13, 2007. They presented a signed banner to Ranjit Shahani, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, Novartis India Limited, offering their thanks for the treatment and support they receive through GIPAP. Several patients volunteered to share how Glivec and GIPAP changed their lives. You can find their stories here.
Nitin
Mongia
Champion of the waves
Nitin Mongia – a 34 year-old active outdoorsman and a world-class competitive sailor – doesn’t look like a cancer patient undergoing treatment. Nitin began treatment with Glivec three months after his initial diagnosis, and has experienced so few side-effects that, he says, “I’m leading my life absolutely…My daily life hasn’t changed.”
The cost of treatment was initially a major concern for Nitin. He works in the catering industry, but his family income, like that of most Indian residents, is not sufficient to pay out-of-pocket costs for medicines. Then he learned of GIPAP, the Novartis assistance program managed by the Max Foundation, which allows him to receive Glivec at no cost. “The GIPAP program is just remarkable,” he says. In addition, Nitin adds, GIPAP and the Max Foundation go beyond medicine distribution: “It’s also about caring for one another. We get a lot of support through Max.”
Today, Nitin is symptom-free, and the biggest challenge of his daily life is preparing for what he hopes will be a trip to the Olympic Games in China next year as a member of India’s sailing team.
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(22KB)
Our voice in India
Novartis patient assistance in India from the perspective of the head of MaxStation India