Doctors at Fortis Hospital, Mohali calls for Early Screening for prevention & timely treatment of Cancer

The oncologists at Fortis Hospital, Mohali called for early screening for prevention and timely treatment of any form of cancer. Dr Sumeet Jain, Onco-Surgeon at Fortis Cancer Institute, Mohali advised screening should become top most priority as early detection helps cure cancer quicker during a talk organised for Mohali Senior Citizens’ Association today. The average age of diagnosis of the common cancers is 60 years and above.

As per government estimates, the number of deaths due to breast cancer is 74,463; due to cervical cancer is 69,291 and due to lung cancer is 1,09,710 by 2020i. As reported by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the projected deaths due to lung cancer account for 15.6% of all cancer deaths in males and is the leading cause of death. The deaths due to cervical cancer account for 20.6% and breast cancer account for 17.4% of all female cancer deathsii. Studies also state that the average age of breast cancer diagnosis is 61, it’s 66 for prostate cancer, 68 for colorectal cancer and 70 for lung cancer. Dr Jain quoted a study conducted by Boston Consulting Group that had revealed that 60-80% cancers in India are diagnosed at advanced stage.

Throwing light on this growing menace, Dr Sumeet Jain said, “Everybody is at risk today. The rising number of cancer patients can only be checked if we regularly check for any symptom of cancer. An early detection along with excellent care improve the chance of survival as well as quality of their lives.”
Regular screening is essential for the most common types of cancer which are breast cancer, cervical cancer, mouth cancer and lung cancer. With self-breast examination, women can regularly check for any lump which may be cancerous. It is important that women in the age group of 30 to 65 yearsiii undergo Visual Inspection with Acetic Acid (VIA) technique creening for cervical cancer. The human papillomavirus (HPV) testing can help show pre-cancerous lesions that take years to develop into cancer can be identified early and appropriate measures can be taken.

“The tests are simple and cost effective. The importance of these tests lay in pre-empting risks associated with cancer related deaths. Early detection can effectively cure patients quickly. This is important for a healthy life post treatment,” Dr Jain said while emphasising for regular screening.

As per National Cancer Registry Programme of National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research, 1 out of 8 men has the possibility of developing cancer in his lifetime (0-74 years).iv Indian Council of Medical Research’s (ICMR) Cancer registry data, estimated incidences of cancer for 2016 are 14.5 lakh, which is estimated to go up to 17.3 lakh cases by 2020. The number of deaths due to cancer for 2016 are estimated to be around 7.3 lakh which is estimated to go up to 8.8 lakh by 2020.

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