Super 30’s Anand Kumar Has Non-Cancerous Brain Tumour: What Is It?

“You have no idea of life and death, so I wanted this biopic to be made while I was alive,” he said.

Patna-based educationist and founder of the 'Super 30' programme Anand Kumar recently revealed that he is suffering from brain tumour.

Kumar, whose life is the subject of the new Hrithik Roshan-starrer "Super 30", has opened up about his battle with acoustic neuroma, a non-cancerous tumour.

In an interview with a wire agency, Kumar said that trouble began in 2014, when he was "unable to hear" in his right ear. Tests revealed nearly 90 percent of his hearing ability in the ear had been destroyed.

Kumar then got himself checked at Delhi's Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.

“They told me I had no issues with my ear. Instead, a tumour had developed in the nerve that runs from ear to brain.” 

Anand Kumar

Due to his health conditions, Kumar, who is currently on medication, wanted his biopic to be completed as soon as possible.

Kumar recalled that the film's writers requested him to give permission to start work on the project as soon as possible. "You have no idea of life and death, so I wanted this biopic to be made while I was alive," he added.

Talking about the film, he had earlier told IANS: "Hrithik is a huge star and has a global reach. So, I believe people will get to know the essence of my life in detail now."

What is Acoustic Neuroma?

WebMD defines the condition as ‘a noncancerous growth that develops on the eight cranial nerve which connects the inner ear with the brain’.

FIT spoke with Dr Sudheer Ambekar, Consultant Neurosurgeon at Jalsok Hospital and Research Centre, who explained,

This benign tumor (noncancerous) grows very slowly. Initial systems are vague. Usually, a progressive loss of hearing is experienced in one ear, and since we have two — many of us tend to neglect this symptom. Other symptoms could be dizziness, imbalance while walking, giddiness, vomiting or even paralysis of an arm or leg — depending on the severity.

Dr Sudheer Ambekar

However, since 99.9 percent of the times it is noncancerous, it could be treated with a surgery, and people in most cases are able to resume their normal lives. That is also what makes it different from a cancerous brain tumour which would spread, and for which there is still no proper cure, Dr Ambedkar said.

(With inputs from IANS)