Times of India: Hyderabad: Wednesday,
June 01, 2016.
While the
latest data put out by the Indian Council of Medical Research suggests that
Tobacco-Related Cancers (TRCs) comprised 29 per cent of all cancer cases
detected in 2015, no lessons seem to have been been learnt back home in
Telangana.
In a complete
failure on the part of the state government, figures obtained under the RTI
Act, show that the health department did not utilise even a single rupee under
the centrally-funded National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) for two
consecutive years in a row. This even as The ICMR's population-based cancer
registry (PBCR) data showed that 4,02,641 cancer cases were triggered by
tobacco use last year as opposed to a total of 13,88,397 new cases recorded in
the same year.
Responding to
the RTI query filed by cardiologist-turned-anti-tobacco activist Dr Srinivas
Ramaka, director of health, Telangana, Dr Y Lalitha Kumari, said that that
during 2015-2016, the state received Rs 40 lakh (under the NTCP) and another Rs
5 lakh under National Health Mission for anti-tobacco activities, but the
'amount (was) not utilised'.
While
highlighting the state's neglect of this critical matter, Ramaka said,
"The Telangana state health department stands of states in the country in
terms of taking up tobacco control activities under NTCP, whose funds are
likely to have been misused or diverted to other causes. Even northeastern
states like Assam, Tripura and Nagaland fared better than Telangana in
utilisation of NTCP funds in 2015-16." Ramaka has filed RTIs with all
state health ministries regarding the NTCP.
Union health
ministry records for 2014-15 show that Telangana received Rs 89,74,00 for
taking up NTCP activities like enforcement of the Tobacco Control Act (COTPA,
2003) by way of levying fines from violators and setting up tobacco cessation
services. However, there is no record of these funds.
The state's
failure in utilising funds and utter mismanagement, could prove disastrous as
city cancer experts now claim that TRCs are increasing at a rapid rate.
"In the city, the top three TRCs are those affecting the lungs, oesophagus
and mouth," said Dr K Sreekanth, senior surgical oncologist, Yashoda
Hospitals, Somajiguda. He added that TRCs have been increasing at an annual
rate of two to five per cent in the city.
In fact, this
trend is corroborated by ICMR in its latest cancer data from 27 PBCRs collected
from 27 towns and cities across India, which also showed that lung cancer cases
topped the TRC list. Lung cancer was found to be the leading cancer type in 11
PBCRs, followed by Oesophageal cancer in eight PBCRs and mouth cancer in seven
PBCRs.
Not
surprisingly, smoking habits are being blamed for lung cancer with data
obtained by online doctor consultation platform www.kare4u.in showing an
increase in number of smokers. "Upon analysis of 53,000 online users, who
booked consultations in 2015, we found 15.3 per cent were smokers. But among
29,000 online users who accessed our platform for consultation till May 2016,
the percentage of smokers were found to be 17.7," said Prabin Bardhan,
director, Kare4U.
"In a
non medical de-addiction programme, it is important to ensure that the smoker
does not go back to the environment or circumstances which encourage him or her
to smoke. For instance, the person should not go to pubs or hang out with
friends who smoke until the addiction is completely gone," advised Dr.
Vishwanath Gella, Interventional Pulmonologist, Continental Hospital.
Even
northeastern states like Assam, Tripura and Nagaland fared better than
Telangana in utilisation of NTCP funds in 2015-16
Dr Srinivas
Ramaka, who filed the RTI query.
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