Cancer has become a serious health problem in India, but the government and health agencies do not have accurate data about it. Experts believe that if cancer is declared a 'notifiable disease', then it will be a big problem.

Cancer has become a serious health problem in India, but the government and health agencies do not have accurate data about it. Experts believe that if cancer is declared a 'notifiable disease', a central cancer data system can be created, which can improve treatment, research and health infrastructure. Doctors have appealed to the government to implement this initiative as soon as possible, so that the lives of millions of people can be saved.

According to Lieutenant General (Retired) Dr. Bipin Puri, Director of Medical Services at Apollo Hospital, notifiable disease means that the government should have a centralized data of the entire country, so that correct figures of cancer can be obtained and better treatment is possible. Till now only infectious diseases are considered notifiable, such as COVID-19, plague and cholera. Because these diseases spread rapidly and can take the form of an epidemic. However, doctors believe that cancer has also become a major health problem and it is very important to declare it as a notifiable disease.

Data of 90% cancer patients is not recorded!

Dr. SVS Dev, Head and Senior Consultant, Surgical Oncology, Apollo Cancer Center, said that the exact number of cancer patients in India is not yet known. At present, data of only 10% of the patients is recorded, because we only have a hospital-based registration system. There is no accurate data available on the number of actual cancer patients in rural India. If all the hospitals and medical research centers of the country are brought on a single platform, then the actual cases of cancer can be detected.

Research and health infrastructure will be strengthened

Dr. Geeta Kadayaprath, President of Oncology Forum New Delhi, said that in many areas of India, the number of cancer patients is not known. If the government has accurate data, the health infrastructure can be strengthened and cancer treatment can be made available to every corner. 2/3 cancer cases can be prevented, but this is not possible without correct data.

So why is the government not implementing it yet?

According to Dr. Bipin Puri, the government has so far notified only infectious diseases because they spread quickly and can take the form of an epidemic. If cancer is notified, the government will have to allocate more budget and funding. Apart from this, the accountability of doctors and government agencies will also increase.

Will cancer be detected at home through a blood test in the future?

Dr. SVS Deo told that "PAN Cancer Detection Test" has been launched in Britain, which will be a home kit that will detect cancer just by a blood test. However, it may take at least 5 years for it to come to the Indian market. Also, AI tools are also developing rapidly, which will make the work of doctors easier, but will not be able to replace them completely.