The Korean drama, Thirty-Nineprioritises the vulnerability of the patient in its portrayal of the experience of cancer.
Scott Armstrong, a blood cancer expert at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in the United States (US), headed a team of researchers in developing the pill “Revumenib” for leukaemia. The drug showed promise by curing the aggressive disease in a third of patients. While such advances challenge the threat of cancer and promise a potential cure, they address only the medical challenges. It is important for us, as a society, to also pay attention to the nuances of the experience of this illness. Terminal illnesses such as cancer affect not only the physical body but have deeper emotional and psychological impacts too. Although there are awareness programmes that encourage and attempt to start conversations about cancer, the stigma related to it continues to add to the trauma of the experience, for patients and carers alike. Alongside the many awareness programmes, knowledge about the illness takes various other forms too. Popular culture today plays an integral role in the dissemination and creation of a perception about the illness experience. Digital mediums contribute to this perceived reality through their large reach. The growth of pop culture through accessibility across digital mediums such as Netflix, Prime and other over-the-top (OTT) platforms has blurred the boundaries of language and culture creating a wide fan base for Korean pop culture across the world.
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