Cancer to see five-fold increase in India?

India is expected to witness a five-fold increase in cancer cases in the next 10 years owing to various reasons, including tobacco consumption and increase in ageing population of the country, oncologists said.

The latest figures of the National Cancer Registry Programme of the Indian Council for Medical Research indicate that more than 2.5 million Indians suffer from cancer.

"Tobacco-related cancer remains the most common cancer in India. Among women, breast cancer has overtaken cervical cancer, at least in urban areas," Dr A A Ranade, a senior Oncologist, told reporters at a two-day conference on cancer in Bangalore.

The conference has been organised by the Indian Society of Medical and Paediatric Oncology (ISMPO), CME Universe, a continuing medical education division, Indegene Lifesystem, a pharmaceutical major.

The number of breast cancer cases in the cities of India has gone up due to changes in lifestyle among women. As per cancer registries, earlier 10-20 breast cancer cases were reported per one lakh population, which is now 30-40 per lakh.

"Aping Western life, using alcohol and consuming fat and junk food were expected to see a dramatic rise in cancer cases in 10-15 years," said Dr Hemant Malhotra, Secretary, ISMPO.

He said the greatest challenge in addressing the growing incidence of cancer in India was late diagnosis.

Though cost was a major hindrance in patients coming forward for diagnosis, many states had come up with policies to subsidise the treatment cost and many were also offering it free for those below poverty line, he added.