South Asia cancer scenario

Decoding cancer scenario in India

Stanley M Marks is the chairman of UPMC Cancer Center, Director of Clinical Services and Chief Medical Officer for UPMC Cancer Center and the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, USA. He is also a significant contributor and member of the tumor board, American Oncology Institute (AOI). Recently, he was in the city to participate in International Cancer Conclave-2018. He spoke to The Hans India and shared his views on the cancer scenario in India. Excerpts:

What is the cancer scenario in India?
Globally, 14 million new cancer cases are detected every year leading to 8 million deaths every year. Nearly 1.1 million of these new cancer cases were reported in India in the year 2015 with a total incidence of cancer reported to be around 3.9 million. Recorded incidence of cancer per 100,000 of the population in India is approximately 100 and is roughly about half of the world average (182 per 100,000) and about one-third of that of developed countries (268 per 100,000).
In India, many cancers in the past that were simply not diagnosed or reported are now being reported due to a significant increase in public awareness, cancer diagnostics and treatment facilities over the last decade. However, still, a lot of cancer cases in India are underdiagnosed and under-reported especially in rural areas which forms the bulk of the population. Cancer-related mortality in India is double that of developed countries, mainly due to patients being diagnosed at a late stage and due to lack of adequate preventive screening programmes.
What are the root causes of cancer and how can the same be prevented?  Read more

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *