Cancer treatment top priority for govt, Rs 3K cr allocated, says Nadda

Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Sunday said cancer treatment is a top priority area for policy makers and a sum of Rs 3000 crore has been allocated for the purpose.

He was speaking after inaugurating the Truebeam facility (linear accelerator used in radiation oncology) at the State Cancer Institute here. "We have made cancer treatment top priority. We have increased our baseline for screening and detection. 

  In 1,75,000 Ayushman Arogya Mandirs (AAMs), screening for oral, breast and cervical cancer has been conducted.  We have made the age of 30 mandatory for screening. Cancer treatment is a priority area for policy makers and we have allocated Rs 3000 crore for the purpose," he said. Nadda said more than 26 crore people have been screened for oral cancer, following which 1.63 lakh cases were detected.  "As many as 14.6 crore people were screened for breast cancer, resulting in 57,179 detections. More than 9 crore people were screened for cervical cancer, and 96,973 persons were detected with it. The word cancer scares people, breaking them emotionally and financially.  We can at least make timely interventions and improve the lives of patients by making proactive strategies," Nadda asserted.