With the Elders expressing concern over lack of affordable medical facilities to treat cancer patients, especially poor, Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said on Wednesday in the Rajya Sabha  the Government is giving attention to research for combating the menace through national as well as international collaborations and plans to establish 1.5 lakh health and wellness clinics in the country by 2022.

Giving this assurance while replying to short duration discussion on the need to ensure basic facilities and affordable treatment to cancer patients, he said at present there are 482 centres in the country for cancer treatment with 695 teletherapy machines.  The Elders in their assertions demanded setting up of a cancer unit in every districts with qualified doctors to treat poor patients. They also mooted the idea of free treatment of the disease as medicines and other associated measured like chemotherapy were expensive.  They also sought increase in government spending on healthcare and reduction in cost of cancer treatment and medicines.

The minister said the ‘National Cancer Grid’ initiative for uniform treatment of cancer patients was being closely monitored by the Prime Minister, with 177 institutions, activists, patients and advocacy groups associated with it.  He shared that eight institutions have already been dedicated towards this objective, while two are in the offing in Odisha and Bihar.

He underlined that India was one of the seven founding member countries among the 40 nations globally which have established an international cancer genome consortium, and are engaged in extensive work in the area through the consortium.  He observed that 60-70 per cent of the common cancers detected in India are preventable and highlighted the significance of early diagnosis.

Congress leader and former health minister Ghulam Nabi Azad sought the status on various programmes of erstwhile UPA government for boosting infrastructure, human resources and awareness in health care sector particularly killer diseases cancer, diabetics and hypertension.

He told the House that the UPA government had given Rs 5 crore each to 640 districts for early detection of killer diseases and Rs 120 crore per hospital to states for making those as centres for treating such diseases.  He suggested the government provide more funds for creating infrastructure, human resources and awareness for early detection of these diseases.

Jogen Chowdhury (TMC),  Prasanna Acharya (BJD),  Ram Nath Thakur(JD-U)who disclosed that his wife is undergoing treatment for blood cancer for the last 11years,  Birendra Prasad Baishya(AGP),  Binoy Viswam(CPI), Narendra Jadhav (Nominated) and Ramdas Athawale(RPI (A) also spoke on the issue and gave suggestions to improve facilities for cancer treatment.  The discussion was initiated by Vishambhar Prasad(SP).