New Delhi: Over 50 children in the age group of one month to 14 years die of cancer every day in India, according to a recent study which also highlights the significant monetary burden of the disease and lack of advanced treatment options in the country.
The study, published in the Journal of Global Oncology, says dearth of medical data in low and middle-income countries like India hampers efforts to place childhood cancer on public health agenda and hinders framing and implementation of national strategies to counter the disease.
In developed countries, more than 80% of children suffering with cancer are cured because of significant progress in treatment.
The study, conducted by researchers from international institutes, including University of Toronto and Mumbai’s Tata Memorial Centre, pegs the rate of mortality due to pediatric cancer in India at 37 per million every year.
Researchers utilised data from the Million Death Study, a unique, nationally representative and longitudinal survey of over 14 million people, including a cohort of more than 27,000 pediatric deaths in India.
Researchers say the low penetration of advanced treatment options in low and middle income countries like India is primarily because of underestimating the true incidence or mortality, The Times of India reported.
Cancer is fast taking epidemic proportions in India. According to a Lancet report of 2014, slightly over 10 lakh new cases of cancer are diagnosed every year in the country. As per WHO’s latest assessment, cancer cases in India will multiply five times over the next decade (by 2025). Increasing incidence and mortality from cancer is also leading to economic burden of treatment, which was 20 times the annual income of an average family, an assessment by AIIMS showed.
Alarmed by the rising trend, the health ministry is working on an overarching National Multi-Sectoral Action Plan with the aim to reduce premature deaths from cancer, diabetes and heart diseases by 25% in the next 10 years.
However, successful implementation of the plan would require several measures, including improved lifestyle, healthy eating, anti-tobacco and anti-sugar measures, pollution control, early screening and detection, and infrastructure development.