It was July 1987 and José
Carreras was in Paris recording the film version of La Bohème de Puccini under
the direction of Luigi Comencini. During the filming process Mr. Carreras began
to feel unwell and went to hospital. After 48 hours came the big shock:
leukaemia. It was a terrible diagnosis that came at a time when he
was professionally and personally at his "peak".
In 1988, during the treatment of his disease, Jose Carreras together with a
great team of scientists and businessmen, and with the support of his family he
created the José Carreras International Foundation to contribute to the search
for a cure for leukaemia. When he was asked why he had created this
project he responded: "the truth is that I started this project to say
thank you. When I was sick, society came to my aid. I want to give back for all
those demonstrations of affection, equally to people and to science".
Since its beginnings the
José Carreras Foundation against Leukaemia has pursued one great aim. In fact,
it is more than that; it is a significant challenge both scientifically
and socially: to reach a day when leukaemia is curable for all and in all
cases.
Leukaemia, like many other
diseases, develops without warning and is therefore difficult to accept. In the
first moments, like any other patient, José Carreras felt puzzled but quickly
established a positive attitude towards the situation. He explains that
"during all the treatment I felt that if there was one chance in a million
then I needed to fight for it and never throw in the towel".
For more than 25 years,
José Carreras has been at the forefront of the Foundation's work and dedicates
many concerts to the Foundation each year, in order to actively contribute to
the financing of the organization's various projects.
Jose Carreras singing around the world years after the recovery of his leukaemia
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