Mumbai: The administration of state-run J.J. Hospital has written a letter to the Medical Council of India (MCI), asking for a permit to start a specialised post-graduate course on cancer for students of medicine. According to doctors, cancer cases in the state have seen a sharp rise in the past few years even as the number of doctors treating the disease remains comparatively low.
According to the public health department, cancer of the head and neck is usually seen in the younger population although it is largely diagnosed at a later stage; followed by oral cancer and cancer of the lung, cervix and breast.
Dr Tatyarao Lahane, joint director of DMER, said, “I had written a letter to MCI requesting that a curriculum on cancer in the PG course be started. By taking cognisance about cancer ailments which are on the rise, we need many of our medicos to spread awareness and treat them.”
Dr Lahane said, “We thought about having this course so that students gain extra knowledge with a specialised cancer syllabus which will help better detection and treatment of cancer.” Dr Dilip Nikam, head of the cancer OPD, J.J. Hospital, said, “If the course is started, lakhs of people will benefit from it.”
“Oral and breast cancer cases are on the rise in the city and state. However, compared to the number of patients, the number of specialised doctors is quite low. We need more specialised doctors to handle the burgeoning number of such cases,” he said.
