Last week, when Hodgkin's Lymphoma Stage 4 patient, 22-year-old Winston Fernandes from Mira Road, was admitted to the hospital for a treatment that would cost him 20 lakh, his middle class family was anxious about raising the sum. Like they say in all stories of hope, help came from the most unknown sources: online donations. From Rs 200 to Rs 20,000, small and big contributions poured in from across the world. In two days, the entire sum was raised.

Anita Peters, Executive Director, Cancer Patients Aid Association, who was instrumental in raising awareness for his case, says, "The turnaround time to raise the required funds largely depends on the reach of the appeal, which ranges from two to 20 days. The more people share the details on their timeline, the better the reach." Since several on-ground events fundraising have moved online, Peters says that when a celebrity (Vivek Oberoi in this case) makes a video for an appeal, the reach is higher. They do seek patient consent before sharing videos on social media as the stigma related to cancer still exists.