Irrfan Khan Shares Details of His Battle With Rare Cancer

A well-known name in Hollywood and Bollywood, the actor is undergoing treatment in London for a high-grade neuroendocrine cancer.


Irrfan Khan, the Bollywood film star who crossed over to Hollywood in recent years with great success, has shared new details of his ongoing battle with a rare form of cancer.


Khan, 52, who has starred in a slew of hit films including Life of Pi, Slumdog Millionaire and Jurassic World, first revealed in March via a tweet that he had been diagnosed with a high-grade neuroendocrine cancer. Since then, he has been undergoing treatment in London.


Detailing his ordeal for the first time, Khan said in an emotional statement Tuesday, published by the Times of India newspaper, "I trust, I've surrendered irrespective of the outcome, irrespective of where this takes me, eight months from now, or four months from now, or two years."


He added that after being admitted for treatment, "due to fewer case studies" for this particular type of cancer, "[the] unpredictability of the treatment was more. I was part of a trial-and-error game."


Khan said his hospital in London is located opposite the famous Lord's cricket grounds. "Between the game of life and the game of death, there is just a road," he said, adding, "On one side, a hospital, on the other, a stadium. As if one isn’t part of anything which might claim certainty -- neither the hospital nor the stadium. That hit me hard."


The award-winning actor also thanked his fans and well-wishers, saying, "Throughout my journey, people have been wishing me well, praying for me, from all over the world.... They were praying from different places, different time zones, and I feel all their prayers become ONE."


Since he debuted in Mira Nair's Cannes winner Salaam Bombay in 1988, Khan has had a busy career at home and abroad, working both in television and films. His recent credits include last year's Bollywood hit Hindi Medium, Bengali language title Doob: No Bed of Roses and arthouse title The Song of Scorpions, among others.


His latest Hollywood project is Marc Turtletaub's Puzzle, co-starring Kelly Macdonald, which premiered at Sundance and is set for a July release, while his latest Hindi film, Karwaan, will open in August. Khan's upcoming projects are currently on hold, including the recently announced series, The Ministry, a political satire for Amazon Prime Video India.