Dr. Fariah Sharmeen

Dr. Fariah Sharmeen is an associate consultant in oncology. MBBS and FCPS in radiotherapy. She has some training in medical oncology too. That means she handles both the radiation and the chemo. Her room is probably pretty quiet. People do not talk loud in cancer wards. They just sit on the chairs outside holding thick plastic folders. She looks at the biopsy reports. Just reading the margins. She tells them how many cycles of chemo they need. Or how many days of radiation. They usually ask if their hair will fall out. She just says yes. Probably tells them to buy a soft cap. She writes down the drug names. Red fluids in plastic bags. Sort of a heavy job.

The radiotherapy area is usually down in the basement. Thick concrete walls. Heavy doors with a red light above them. She sits at a computer console outside the room. Looking at black and white scans on the screen. Drawing red and blue lines around the tumor. Just mapping out where the radiation should hit. Trying to miss the healthy stuff. The machine inside makes a loud buzzing sound. Patients just lie there alone on a hard table for ten minutes. She probably clicks the mouse a few times. Adjusts the dose. The printer spits out a treatment plan. She signs it. Takes a sip of water from a plastic bottle. Goes to check the next file.