A couple of months ago, Nafisa Ali revealed to SCREEN that her ovarian cancer is now in the fourth stage, and she’s entered remission for the third time. The veteran actor took to her Instagram handle on Sunday to share yet another update about the spreading of her cancer. She revealed that her treatment protocol has changed after the latest scans showed the cancer has now deposited on the surface of her liver.

Nafisa Ali’s health update

Nafisa, 69, shared a picture of her lying on a hospital bed, smiling, as she holds an IV drip bag. “My treatment protocol has changed and now I have been put on a Targeted Therapy… fighting the good fight. Thank you for always keeping my support energy strong,” wrote Nafisa in the caption. “In very simple terms, the PET/CT suggests that the ovarian/peritoneal cancer has progressed, with new deposits on the surface of the liver,” she added.

Several Instagram users took to the comment section to wish Nafisa a speedy recovery. These included fashion designer Farah Khan Ali, who commented, “You fight girl. You are strong, you are fabulous, you are brave, and you will succeed. Love and prayers your way always my Naf (red heart emojis).” In fact, Farah event sent wishes to another Instagram user, who claimed her cancer is in the same stage as Nafisa’s. “You will fight this and you will win. Don’t give up. Sending you love and prayers too (red heart emojis),” commented Farah.

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Nafisa Ali’s cancer battle

Nafisa revealed in 2018 that she was diagnosed with stage 3 peritoneal and ovarian cancer. Living in Goa, she has been seeking treatment since then. “Cancer is something that tears families apart. It tears your financial balance apart. It is the scariest journey that I have ever been on because earlier, I could fight for the world. Now, I’m fighting for my life,” the actor told SCREEN in July earlier this year.

“So, it has taught me that I need to leave a message for my children, for my family, and for the young people: that the world definitely deserves to be a better place. And I will not step back and allow the powers that be to silence me. I want to tell the truth because, one, it is the future that belongs to everybody else. And we owe it to them to do right,” she added.

Cancer hasn’t stopped Nafisa from working either, even though sporadically. Four years after her diagnosis, she played the estranged wife of Amitabh Bachchan’s character in Sooraj Barjatya’s 2022 coming-of-age adventure film Uunchai. Most recently, she was seen opposite Nasser in Padmakumar Narasimhamurthy’s slice-of-life film Max, Min & Meowzaki, which released in cinemas earlier this year.

Padmakumar revealed to SCREEN that after hearing and loving the script, Nafisa had “cold feet” about playing Jennifer in the film. “She said, ‘No no, I haven’t acted for a while. And I actually forget my lines.’ I said, ‘That’ll actually help,'” he said, since Nafisa’s role of Jennifer also has the tendency to forget in the film.

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“You’ll do amazingly. My only problem is, how do I make the character act?,” is Padmakumar’s pitch that made Nafisa eventually say yes to the film. “She’s fantastic to work with, so inspiring,” added the filmmaker. Nafisa made her acting debut with Shyam Benegal’s Junoon (1979), before she appeared in memorable films like Anurag Basu’s 2007 romantic drama Life in a… Metro.