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| Cancer patients increase alarmingly in J&K | | Govt fails to install PET scan machines | |
Saqib Junaid
Early Times Report
SRINAGAR, May 23: Despite increase in the number of cancer patients in Jammu and Kashmir, government has failed to install PET scan machines in hospitals which could detect the cancer at the early stage of the patients.
Even as the cancer cases are continuously on rise in Jammu and Kashmir during the past many years, sources said the state government has not shown any seriousness in making available facilities to timely diagnose and treat this deadly disease.
In the 2015, according to official figures, 4,500 people were diagnosed with cancer at SMHS Hospital and SKIMS in Kashmir while in 2014 the number was 4000. Similarly, there has been alarming increase in cancer patients in Jammu region. Official sources said the number of cancer patients will be much higher as most of them are not being diagnosed due to lack of equipments available in hospitals of the state.
The number of patients has been increasing every year and it has crossed over one lakh now, officials said. Some of the affluent patients are going to Mumbai and New Delhi. Such hospitals are also crowded due to which the patients have to wait for their turn for diagnosis and due to such delay, the disease become terminal and some patients either die or become untreatable.
The people according to sources are being compelled to visit North India centres for diagnostic and treatment facilities, which otherwise is a hassle-full exercise.
Sources said the poor lower group people who could not afford to pay Rs. 20000 for a PET scan outside the State become the victims of this disease even without getting diagnosed.
Over the years the medicos have been demanding that multi-modality cancer hospitals should be established in Jammu and Kashmir region as people have to go other parts for the treatment.
The High Court in February this year also directed the government to take effective steps for installation of PET scam machines in all government medical colleges of the state within a period of six months for providing better diagnostic facility to the cancer patients.
The High Court in its judgement has said the Constitution of India mandates the states to provide facilities of health care. "In the state of Jammu and Kashmir, out of one crore population at least 1% is suffering from one or the other types of cancer. Even though Medical Education Department has established Medical Colleges, no health care facility worth the name for the treatment of cancer is provided and no PET scan machine's to diagnose the same has been made available," the court has said.
Further the court has directed that the issue is to be taken note of with all seriousness and same shall be provided in all the Government Medical Colleges, where cancer patients are to be treated, within a period of six months.
The Director SKIMS Dr. Showkat Zargar last year said that an amount of Rs 120 crore as grant-in-aid has been approved by the Central Government and the first installment of Rs 47 crore has been sanctioned and the money will be utilised for procurement of PET Scan and cyclotron machine which will improve the quality of healthcare at the Centre.
However officials Sources Said the government has not made any measures for installation of PET scan machines. "The purchasing committee SKIMS has failed to draft proposal despite making tall claims that necessary steps have been taken to procure PET scan for SKIMS on PPP mode," an official said. |
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