NEW DELHI: Uttar Pradesh has reported the highest incidence of 79,616 cancer related deaths in the country in 2013 followed by Maharashtra with 43,943 cancer mortalities and Bihar with 41,792, according to official figures. Among the other states, West Bengal ranked fourth with 36,118 cancer deaths while Andhra Pradesh (including Telangana), reported 34,119 deaths.
Over the years, there has been a steady increase in the number of cancer related deaths, according to data provided by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). From a total of 452,541 cancer deaths in 2011, the number rose to 465,169 the next year and stood at 478,185 in 2013. Madhya Pradesh saw 28,951 cancer deaths reported in 2013 Tamil Nadu saw cases of cancer mortality go up marginally from 27,302 in 2012 to 27,645 last year. Rajasthan had 27,168 cancer deaths followed by Karnataka with 24,150 deaths and Gujarat with 23,966. The estimated prevalent cancer cases in India which stood at 2,776,954 in 2011, has seen a rise to 2,854,451 in 2012 and 2,934,314 in 2013, reports available here said. But the burgeoning numbers of cancer patients is straining the government’s limited resources. Uttar Pradesh has over a three-year period seen the number of cancer patients climb up to 488,554 in 2013 from 459,036 in 2011 while Maharashtra reported a total of
269,652 patients up from 257,871 in 2011 and Bihar at 256,449 from 239,121 two years ago.
Patients are shelling out prohibitive amounts for treating cancer including diagnosis, medicines and radiotherapy depending on the type of cancer, the site/location in the body, extent of spread, and the stage at which the disease is detected.
However, cancer patients are being treated in hospitals by general surgeons, gynaecologists, ENT surgeons depending on the type and site of cancer. In fact, cancer is being diagnosed and treated at various levels in the government health care system
and not necessarily restricted to cancer specialists, the ICMR findings noted.
In the higher level tertiary care hospitals, doctors with D.M (Medical Oncology), M.Ch (Surgical Oncology) and M.D (Radiation Oncology) were treating cancer patients. To share the burden of cancer care on state governments, the Central Government is supplementing their efforts for providing healthcare facilities.
Treatment in government hospitals is either free or subsidised. Financial assistance to Below Poverty Line (BPL) patients is provided under the Rashtriya Arogya Nidhi (RAN). Set up in 2009, the Health Minister’s Cancer Patient Fund within RAN has 27 erstwhile Regional Cancer Centres (RCCs) which are being provided with revolving funds to provide immediate financial assistance up to Rs one lakh to BPL cancer patients. Recognising the need to cater to the growing demand for cancer treatment in the country, the Union Government had assisted 27 regional cancer centres which have Oncology wards. It has recently approved a scheme for enhancing the tertiary Care cancer facilities in the country under which the GoI will assist 20 State Cancer Institutes (SCI) and 50 Tertiary Care Cancer Centres (TCCC) in different parts of the country. This information was given by Health Minister J P Nadda in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha last week. (agencies)
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