A cyclothon to raise awareness about colorectal cancer was organised by AIG Hospitals on Saturday. MLC Kavitha Kalvakuntla was chief guest at the event.
The hospital management said what was viewed as primarily a disease of the West is catching up in the Indian population at a rapid pace. In India, it is affecting younger, working class people, with high mortality rates.
“Presented with trivial symptoms like constipation, blood in stool which many ignore as a case of hemorrhoids, chronic fatigue or weakness throughout the day and unintentional weight loss, colorectal cancers grow silently inside the body. By the time a patient comes to the specialist, it’s already at an advanced stage,” doctors from the hospital said.
They added that patient do not experience most of the symptoms which leads to aggressive spread of the disease. When they seek treatment, chances of complete cure becomes low to a great extent.
“We rarely used to see colorectal cancers in India a few decades ago. However, with the advent of sedentary urban lifestyle combined with low-fibrous and high-calorie diet, the incidence of these cancers are outgrowing all others,” said hospital chairman D. Nageshwar Reddy.
The cyclothon was held with support of Happy Hyderabad Community, Hyderabad Cycling Group, and Hyderabad Bicycling Club. Director and chief of Surgical Gastroenterology, G.V. Rao also participated.
