A decade ago, infection was the most prominent cause of morbidity and mortality in India. There has been a prominent shift of focus of attention from infection to cancer over the last decade. In today's India, cancer is an increasingly important health problem. Every hour "Cancer Kills" 50 people in India, while 100 more people are diagnosed of Cancer in the same period. This is as per The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), who has collected the data under National Cancer Registry programme.
Cancer is the 4th largest killer disease in India. India has a population of more than 1000 millions. Annually, 440,000 patients die of various types of cancers in India, and 700,000 to 900,000 are diagnosed of Cancer. At any given time, there are about 2.5 million Cancer patients in India.
The lung cancer is the commonest cancer in men. Lung is a leading site of cancer in women as well, although cancer of the cervix and breast are the commonest cancers in women.
Cancer in India is unique from the perspective that it usually presents in a clinically advanced stage in very high percentages of cases - about 75-80%. There are also some unique aspects of cancer epidemiologist in India. For example, tongue cancer in males from Bhopal, and gall-bladder cancer in Delhi have among the highest incidence rates in the world.
Survival rates in most cancers are today comparable with the western world, but vary from center to center within India. Five-year survival rates are 40-60% for breast cancer in females and 40-50% for cervical cancer. Bone marrow transplantation today has become an easily available form of potentially curative treatment. It is being offered by four leading centers in India namely Jaslok Hospital and Research Center, Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, CMC Vellore, AIIMS Delhi and the Apollo Hospital in Chennai.
What is Cancer: Cancer is undisciplined and abnormal growth of cells in the body. The cancer cells attack the normal cells, spreading damage and death to their tissues and organs. The disease is spreading fast the world over and in India.
Causes of Cancer:
1. Viruses and Bacteria: like EB virus (only when immunity is reduced), The Virus Hepatitis B, leads to live cancer and Human Pappiloma Virus (HPV) to cancer of the cervix. The Helicobater Pylori (H. Pylori) bacteria is one of the cause of gastric cancer.
2. Carcicogens: They are cancer causing agents through foods and chemicals like, tobacco, tobacco smoke, Asbestos, Vinyl chloride, Uranium, Naphthalene dyes, Nitrites and nitrates (being used to preserve meats) etc.,
3. Hormones and drugs: Hormones and cancer curing drugs are known to be double edged weapons, i.e., while on one hand they are essential, they are cancer causing.
4. Nuclear Radiation: Including X-Rays and other nuclear based tests.
5. Chemicals: Industrial agents from chimney soot to arsenic, coal tars and dry-cleaning agents.
6. Foods: The National Research Council has mentioned in the paper "Diet, Nutrition and Cancer (1983)" about the diet and cancer relations. They are, Fats, hypovitaminosis, Foods which are salted, pickled and smoked, Alcohol, Hypervitaminosis (Large intake of vitamins more than recommended daily allowances (RDA),
7. Sunlight: Excessive exposure to Sunlight.
8. Inherited DNA: Genetically inherited DNA, which loses its controlled multiplication of cells, and gets into indiscipline growth of cells namely cancer.
9. Stress: Sometimes we are unable to relax and control anxiety and tension i.e., mainly the internal stress. This leads to diseased changes in the musculoskeletal system, the nervous system, the endocrine system (concerned with many hormones) and the immune system. Stress triggers release of hormones from Pituitary like ACTH, which triggers cortical hormone from adrenal gland, which lowers body's immunity to disease by inhibiting antibodies and killer T cells, the cells produced by thymus gland for supervising the diseases and immune system.
10. Cancer is more amongst Single persons: The anxiety, tension, stress and various types psychosomatic diseases are higher in single people due to lack of expression, lack of dissipation of feelings and lack of belongingness. Therefore, it is logical too, as cancer is more significant in single, widowed and divorced persons.
Metastasis of Cancer: This is re-attack of cancer after surgery, chemotherapy or radiation. In metastasis, cancer cells re-multiply and travel through blood and lymphic system to other parts of the body and with magnitude of thousand times.