Cancer of the nervous system, brain, breast, ovaries, lungs and mouth tops cancer cases in Haryana, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, as per the Fortis Memorial Research Institute (FMRI) cancer registry.
Among the few private institutes set up in 2013 to collect data on the prevalence and trends in cancer in India, the registry aims to help authorities make better decisions to combat cancer. It includes a pre-devised questionnaire, which records information based on socio-demographic factors, diagnosis, clinical extent of the disease, stage, treatment, prognosis, etc., as recorded by doctors. The data is then validated using quality control programmes followed by cancer registries of the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
17.3 lakh new cases by 2020
According to The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), India will see 17.3 lakh new cases of cancer — with breast, cervix and lung cancer being the most prominent — by 2020. The ICMR launched the National Cancer Registry Program (NCRP) to establish an age-wise and gender-based demographic profile of cancer patients. However, challenges exist in the availability of updated data for the public and stakeholders.
Dr. Vinod Raina, executive director, FMRI said: “Non-communicable diseases account for 53% deaths in India, of which 6% are cancer deaths. The purpose of a cancer registry program is to collect data as per age, gender, geographical distributions, type of cancer, site of cancer, grading and staging of cancer (to evaluate degree of invasion and metastasis), management, morbidity and mortality. Such a database is critical for yearly mapping of prevalence, future planning of resources, assessment of preventive measures and charting disease trends.”
The main sources of information of a hospital-based registry include information from treatment facilities, such as radiation oncology, medical oncology and surgical oncology clinics; information from diagnostic services, radiology departments, imaging clinics; and information from medical records.
