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Bhakti Mathur

A month after his 35th birthday, Nidhin Valsan received unwelcome news: a diagnosis of late-stage non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, a type of blood cancer.
The senior officer with the Indian Police System was shaken, but he steeled himself for the fight of his life.
He would undergo gruelling treatment – and afterwards, train to complete his first triathlon: the Ironman 70.3 Goa.
He chronicles his return to wellness in his memoir Cancerman to Ironman: A Police Officer’s Journey of Arresting Illness. It describes his battle with cancer, the support system that sustained him, his struggle with anxiety and depression, and training for the Ironman.

In 2020, Valsan had been posted to India’s Goa state as superintendent of police. Soon after, he began getting chest pains and developed pain in his groin.
“I would wake up in the middle of the night in agony. I was barely getting sleep and lost 4kg [8.8lb] within a month,” says the now 39-year-old, adding that he was in excruciating pain for three months.
Doctors diagnosed him with cervical spondylosis and arthritis. But a few weeks later, in January 2021, an MRI and biopsy revealed the pain’s true cause: cancer.
He felt sorrow, but also relief.
“While my entire world shook around me, at least I knew the reason for the pain,” he says.
He asked himself: “Why me? Am I going to die? If I survive, will I ever be the same? What about my parents, my wife, my kids? Will they be able to bear the news?” His son Ishaan was five and daughter Niya three at the time.
“Telling my family was the toughest part,” he says.

He had six cycles of chemotherapy, suffering side effects including exhaustion, nausea, and a dry and burnt feeling in his throat.
When he awoke to find his pillow covered with hair, he shaved his head.
He also changed his diet, eliminating red meat and sugar, quitting alcohol, and having protein-rich foods.
The treatment was hard on him, physically and mentally.
“I had a belly, a bald head with no eyebrows and no hair. The worst side effects were the mood swings. I thought: ‘Will chemotherapy work? Will there be a relapse? What about my career?’ All of a sudden, I felt lonely, unwanted, like a liability,” he says.
He learned Arabic to further his career prospects – and keep his mind occupied.

After the chemotherapy, he had a 45-day wait for a scan that would show if it had been successful. He took up a friend’s suggestion and began to write a book about his struggles.
When the scan showed Valsan was cancer-free, he rejoined the force, 10 months after his diagnosis
It was not easy.
“One night, my wife found me sitting alone on the sofa, crying. As I spoke to her about my fears and anxieties, I realised that I was depressed,” he says.
A therapist worked with him on inner-child healing and visualisation techniques. After three months, he was able to break the recurring pattern of negative thoughts and find a sense of peace.
Before developing cancer, Valsan had been running regularly. When his weight climbed from 72kg to 90kg after his diagnosis - and his daughter exclaimed that “Papa has a baby in his tummy!” - he took up running again.

A colleague suggested he train for the Ironman event in Goa in November 2022, which involved a 1.2-mile (1.9km) swim, 56-mile bike ride and 13-mile run.
“I had swum 6km non-stop before, run three half-marathons and cycled 60km at a stretch, but never all three together,” he says.
He took up the challenge and signed on to train with a coach.
“I wanted to send a message to anyone facing a difficult time that tough times are a challenge for us to grow. By developing the habits of discipline, consistency and persistence, one can face any difficulty,” he says.
“Difficult times are a bend in the road, not the end of the road.”

Workouts alternated between swimming, running and strength training - with yoga.
“I found it hard to breathe after 30 minutes of running, yet pushed through,” says Valsan, who would wake up 4.45am to start a 5.30am run and be at the yoga centre by 7am.
He swam and did strength training in the evenings after work.
His coach stressed the importance of sleep, so he would put the kids to bed and be asleep by 9pm.
Swimming was his weakest link. He needed to cover 100 metres in under three minutes for the Ironman swim, but after years of using improper technique, it was taking him four. Training with a swim coach and practising drills consistently, his form and time improved.
After having two Covid infections, in October 2021 and January 2022, he boosted his protein intake to improve his immunity and stamina.
He cut down on rice and chapattis – a type of Indian flatbread – and started having four protein-rich egg whites in the morning and four in the evening, along with a drink of ragi malt, with flour made from high-protein, high-fibre finger millet.
To overcome pain from his knees and iliotibial band – the thick band of tissue that runs down the outside of the thigh – Valsan saw a physiotherapist, and regularly iced and rested his knees.

Valsan’s training as a police officer had instilled in him the habits of discipline, consistency and perseverance. To overcome fatigue, he repeated a line from the Keanu Reeves John Wick movie series: “Focus, commitment, sheer will.” Before bed each night, he focused on the next day’s scheduled workout.
His wife has been a pillar of strength. “Remya took care of me – mentally, emotionally and managed my diet,” he says. “I could not have survived this without her.”
His efforts were rewarded at the Ironman competition.
When the green race flag was waved to loud cheers at the start, he walked into the water, began the 1.2-mile swim – and stopped only when his feet touched the sand.
“I looked at my watch: 48.42 minutes, or 2.34 minutes for every 100 metres. My best time!” he exclaims.

After cycling 56 miles, Valsan needed only to run a half marathon – 13 miles – to attain his goal. But with just a mile or so to go, his body gave up and he was forced to sit on the side of the road.
Thoughts of his family waiting at the end gave him the strength to go on.
“I could not let them down,” he says. “As I reached the finish line, I could hear people calling my name. Remya had tears in her eyes … Ishaan and Niya were wearing T-shirts on which was written in bold letters, ‘My Papa is an Ironman!’”
He finished in just under eight hours, four minutes – 26 minutes ahead of the cut-off.
“I felt as though I had won an Olympic medal. Nine months of training – here I was! The cancer, the fight and the struggle made me realise who I truly was. Pain had built my spirit,” he says.
He went on to finish the same race a year later.
In January 2024, though, Valsan’s cancer returned. He was fortunate to have been able to have a bone-marrow transplant and was soon back to work. He is now a deputy commissioner of police in Delhi, and an active yogi.
He begins each day with yoga - doing 50 sun salutations to celebrate another day of living.

He encourages those facing challenging times to never give up, have patience, invest in their health – including at least 30 minutes of exercise daily – and spend time with family and friends.
Relationships, he says, are “the biggest joy in life”.
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After cancer diagnosis at 35 and rapid weight gain, survivor fights to claim first Ironman

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Health & Wellness

Health

To lose weight after gaining nearly 20kg after blood cancer treatment, Indian policeman Nidhin Valsan set his sights on his first triathlon


To lose weight after gaining nearly 20kg after blood cancer treatment, Indian policeman Nidhin Valsan set his sights on his first triathlon.


After cancer diagnosis at 35 and rapid weight gain, survivor fights to claim first Ironman

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}To lose weight after gaining nearly 20kg after blood cancer treatment, Indian policeman Nidhin Valsan set his sights on his first triathlon

To lose weight after gaining nearly 20kg after blood cancer treatment, Indian policeman Nidhin Valsan set his sights on his first triathlon