It is a well-proven fact that blind people often experience heightened senses, enabling them to hear, feel, and live normal lives. Some even use these enhanced senses to make the world a better place. One such example is Ayesha Banu.
Ayesha Banu, a 28-year-old from RT Nagar, has been blind since birth. Throughout her life, she has developed and refined her other senses, especially touch. She now uses her heightened sense of touch as a medical diagnostic tool to detect cancer. She works as an examiner at Cytecare Hospitals in Bengaluru. With her enhanced sense of touch and specialized training, she detects dangerous lumps while screening for breast cancer. This spectacular and innovative initiative, called "Magic Fingers," is a collaboration between Enable India and Cytecare Hospitals and has been saving lives for two years.
The visually challenged girls who work with us have shown remarkable skill in detecting lesions. We compared their findings with ultrasound, mammogram, and clinical breast examination reports and found them to be extremely competent
Samu Ramu, Co founder & CEOI of Cytecare Hospitals
Despite their visual challenges, women like Ayesha have shown tremendous skill in detecting lesions. Their findings are often confirmed through ultrasound, mammograms, and clinical breast examinations, with reports showing high accuracy.
Many women prefer visually challenged examiners due to their precise sense of touch and the trust they inspire. Additionally, these women help maintain privacy, making patients feel safer during examinations.
Ayesha faced blindness from a young age when her eyeballs were removed. Despite this, she overcame numerous challenges, graduated, and now exudes exceptional confidence. She proudly says she has examined over 2,000 women, detecting two advanced cases of breast cancer and several other lesions. Ayesha also donates a portion of her salary to charity.
Similar to Ayesha, Noorunnisa, a 29-year-old from Kolar, lost her vision at the age of three due to a high fever. She holds a bachelor's degree from Jyoti Nivas College in Bengaluru and has also gained independence through the Magic Fingers initiative. This program allows her to support her family of five brothers, a sister, and her homemaker parents.
We dedicate about half an hour per person and perform up to nine examinations daily.
Noorunnisa, Magic Finger Employee
Neither Ayesha nor Noorunnisa has a medical background, yet they studied medical histories, physical examination procedures, and how to write reports. They spend half an hour per person and perform up to nine examinations daily. Dr. Poovamma CU, Senior Consultant of Breast Oncology, commented that in India, visually challenged people rarely get opportunities in science fields. However, thanks to Magic Fingers, they now have a significant chance to help others and save lives.
(Input from various sources)
(Rehash//Yash Kamble/MSM)
