Cancer cases in the city are on the rise, especially among the urban population, warn experts in cancer treatment and blame changes in environment, lifestyle and diet for the alarming incidence of the killer disease.
Great strides have been taken in the treatment of cancer and this brings a lot of hope, say the experts but lament that the cost of cancer treatment is still a nightmare for the public.

Most of the victims have been people in metropolitan cities, said Dr Saravanan Periasami, surgical oncologist at Global Hospitals. However, cervical cancer, which was most common among women earlier, has been pushed to the second place with breast cancer being the leading cause of concern.

“This is mainly because of the increased levels of pollution and rapid lifestyle changes that people undergo. The only good news is that the awareness levels among the public is high these days and they approach the doctor even if they have slight symptoms,” he said.

There is a clearer pattern that is emerging and almost any kind of cancer is treatable if there is early intervention, said the doctor.

Oncologists point out that cancer treatment is very expensive as a lot of money is being pumped into research and the high cost is going to be a cause of concern in the times to come.

“While people who have insurance will scrape through, patients who have to pay from their pockets will suffer,“ says Dr Shruthi Bhatia, consultant, gynae-oncology, Action Cancer Hospital.

Dr Periasami assured the people that cancer is not the end of the world and said, “Instead of getting mislead by the way films project cancer, people should believe there is cure.“

-dc chn