Letters

World No Tobacco Day

Given the impact of tobacco use on young adults, it is critical to understand what factors influence the initiation process during adolescence. Though we have prohibited tobacco advertising and regulation in India under the COTPA Act of the Indian Parliament, it is extremely necessary for all of us to come together and eliminate tobacco use in our city in order to reduce the risk of cancer.

Firhad Hakim, Hon'ble MIC, Govt. of West Bengal & Hon'ble Mayor, KMC

There is a lag period of 10 to 20 years for the ill effects of smoking to present its symptoms in the tobacco-consuming population like smokers and paan-masala chewers. Tobaccorelated diseases, such as lung and head-and-neck cancer, have been almost the exclusive persevere of the males till now. But the way the number of female smokers has increased drastically in the last 10-15 years, we may see a massive increase in the incidence of these diseases among women as well, over the next two decades in India. Today, large number of urban females in their 20s and residing in the metros and Tier 1 cities have taken to smoking cigarettes. In these females, the effect of smoking will manifest in their late 40s and 50s.

Dr. Vineet Govinda Gupta, Sr Consultant, Medical Oncology, Artemis Hospital, Gurugram The more cigarettes we smoke a day, the higher is our risk of cancer. So, stopping the entire habit of smoking and not indulging in any tobacco products can be a good first step to getting rid of cancer. The once-a-month cancer screening camps in the Borough will be organized to diagnose the three most commonly occurring cancers in India: breast, cervical and oral cancer. Together, they account for approximately 35% of all cancers in India. These screening camps will aid in the detection of cancer at an early stage when treatment is more likely to be effective and survival rates are substantially higher. Dr. Sourav Datta, Director, Medica Cancer Hospital and Treasurer IMA Bengal State The country spends tens of thousands of crores every year to treat tobacco-related diseases. A resource-starved country like India cannot afford such a massive spend on a preventable cause of cancer like tobacco. Globally there has been a steady decline in smoking in developed countries due to better awareness. Unfortunately, India has seen only a marginal decline in the number of male smokers. At the same time, the habit of chewing tobacco is increasing, especially among youngsters, and more and more young women are taking to smoking. India needs to put strict curbs on consumption of tobacco. There is an urgent need to create more awareness about the health hazards of tobacco, including better anti-smoking regulations targeted towards the youngsters. Dr. Shivanshu Raj Goyal, Consultant Respiratory, Pulmonology & Sleep Medicine, Artemis Hospital, Gurugram Cancer Incidence and mortality increases with age, with most cancer diagnosis occurring in patients aged 65 and above. The Evaluation and development of treatment recommendations for an older adult with cancer is very challenging and in order to bridge the gap – First of its kind Geriatric Oncology centre at VS Hospital will function in collaboration with senior geriatrician Dr V S Natarajan. It is a one-stop centre for older adults diagnosed with cancer and provides a comprehensive range of medical services to support them. Prof. Dr. S. Subramanian, Senior Medical Oncologist, Founder Chairman and Managing Director, VS Group of Hospitals, Chennai We are the first and only university in India to develop a medical implant and get approval from the Government for testing on humans, with an in-house established ISO-certified GMP facility. This GMP has clean room processing lines for implant and oncology products where the test products can be manufactured. No other educational institution in India has established a GMP facility for manufacture of medical implants and nanomedicines, and none is directly associated with a hospital, like we are with the 1,300-bed Amrita Hospital in Kochi. Dr. Shantikumar Nair, Dean of Nanosciences, Center for Nanosciences & Molecular Medicine, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Kochi

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