Cancer has become a major threat to humans around the world. Various diseases are causing trouble worldwide, however, this is the most common disease with the highest mortality rate. Cancer burden in India has doubled over the last 26 years with 14 lakh people were suffering from this disease in 2016 and it accounts for 7% of deaths in India. Breast, oral, cervical, and lung cancers are most dominant in the country. In India, more than 100,000 and 122844 women suffers from breast cancer and cervical cancer respectively and 48697 people suffers from lung cancer. Oral cancer is one of the top three cancers in India and it has affected around 2 million Indians.
Cancer causes in India is the same as it is in other countries, rapid change in chemical and biological factor of human beings. It can be caused by both internal factors such as hormones, immune conditions and mutations and environmental factors such as radiation, alcohol and tobacco consumption, and poor diet. The mortality rate due to cancer in India is alarming with about 80,6000 existing cases and is responsible for about 0.3 million deaths per year.
Cancer Cases Around India are as Follows:
REGION | TYPE | CAUSES |
Punjab | Kidney, urinary bladder and breast cancer | Pollution, toxic food |
North East India | Oral and stomach cancer | Tobacco |
West Bengal | Lungs and Urinary bladder cancer | Air and water pollution |
South and Coastal India | Stomach cancer | Diets rich in spices and salt |
Goa | Colon cancer | Red meat, alcohol and tobacco |
Gujarat and Rajasthan | Head and neck cancer | Tobacco and pan masala |
Gangetic Plain | Gall bladder, head and neck cancer | Polluted water |
Madhya Pradesh | Oral Cancer | Tobacco and pan masala |
During 1990–1996, around 2.5 million with about 8,00,000 new cases and 5,50,000 deaths per annum. In 1991, approximately 609000 cancer cases have been observed, this number drastically increased to 806000 by the end of the century. Between the years 2012–2014, the mortality rate due to cancer was increased by 6%, more than 1300 Indians died of cancer, National Cancer Registry Programme of Indian Council of Medical Research. Moreover, about 478,180 deaths out of 2,9,34,314, 465169 deaths out of 3,016,628 and 491598 deaths from 2,820,179 cases reported in 2012, 2013, and 2014 respectively.
Growing Government Efforts to Fight Against Cancer
Huge efforts have been made by the Indian government to curb the occurrence of cancer by spreading awareness about the things that leads to this deadly disease. Moreover, the government has spent around USD 90 billion on cancer treatments and research and development. Despite of better advancements for diagnosis and treatment, cancer is still a big threat to our society. Approximately 15 million new cancer cases are being diagnosed and 12 million people are dying each year.
The important component for the diagnosis and treatment of cancer is an overall cancer control plan, this will help the patients in improving and prolonging their life. This plan promotes awareness about cancer and educated patients, families, and community members about the risk factors and the importance of taking preventive measure to avoid the development of cancer. With the increasing technological advancements, we can hope that prevalence of cancer and mortality rate would decrease in the years to come.