30% to 60% of lung cancer patients in Bengaluru are non-smokers: Doctors
Radha, 54, complained of a sudden hoarseness in her voice and chronic cough only to be diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer. Her family was devastated and shocked in equal measure. A doctor herself, Radha led a healthy lifestyle and was a non-smoker. A year later, she succumbed to the killer disease.
When Karthik, 45, a software engineer and a fitness freak, visited a city hospital with pain in the right side of his chest, radiology reports revealed water accumulation in his right lung. The biopsy report threw up a shocker — the techie had adenocarcinoma and the cancer had progressed to its third stage. “His survival chances are only 30% and he may not live beyond five years,” said the oncologist treating Karthik, also a non-smoker.
Contrary to the notion that smoking is the prime cause of lung cancer, city doctors say 30% to 60% of the patients are non-smokers. Most of them are women. Air pollution, exposure to radiation and passive smoking are the contributing factors.
“Of the 500 patients walking into the hospital with lung cancer, at least 200 are non-smokers. The incidence has gone up from 5-6 persons (for a population of 1,00,000) to 12-13 in Bengaluru. In Delhi, the figure stands at 16-17 persons,” said Dr C Ramesh, professor and head of the epidemiology and biostatistics department at Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology.
Dr Neelesh Reddy, consultant oncologist, Columbia Asia hospitals, pointed out that women are at a higher risk. If a man and woman smoke an equal number of cigarettes, it’s the woman who is more susceptible to the cancer, he said.
Doctors say though most patients diagnosed with lung cancer are from urban and semi-urban areas, the incidence is rising among the rural population as well. “Many cases are not registered due to the lack of proper healthcare facilities in rural areas,” Dr Reddy added. According to Dr Ramesh, indoor pollution caused by asbestos and smoke is to blame.
Doctors feel the ban on smoking in public places should be implemented more effectively. They also say in over 80% of the cases, the disease is diagnosed only at an advanced stage. “The government should start screening programmes for both smokers and non-smokers, who should be made to undergo low-dose chest CT scans,” said Dr BS Ajaikumar, chairman and CEO, Healthcare Global Enterprises Limited (HCG Cancer Hospital).
Dr Vivek Anand Padegal, consultant pulmonologist, Fortis Hospital, said many non-smokers respond better to chemotherapy and other forms of treatment compared to smokers. “Access to oral chemotherapy should be made easier and more affordable,” he said.
(Some names have been changed)
No screening programme
There is no proper screening programme for lung cancer and oral cancer, which has the highest incidence in India. We must educate people about personal hygiene and ways to avoid pollution and passive smoking. People shouldn’t wait for the symptoms to show up and instead, go for annual check-ups. On anniversaries and birthdays, one can gift a lung cancer check-up voucher to their dear ones
Dr Somashekhar S P, chairman, Manipal Comprehensive Cancer Centre
Older women more at risk in rural areas
Lung cancer tops the list of cancers among men, with 1 lakh new cases being detected per year. Women, however, account for the majority of lung cancer patients who don’t smoke. In western countries, only 10% to 15% of lung cancer patients are non-smokers. In India, the statistic is more than 40%. In rural Karnataka, women have been exposed to kitchen smoke for long. Only recently have households got access to gas cylinders. This is why we are seeing an increase in the incidence of lung cancer among older women (non-smokers)
Dr Vivek Anand Padegal, consultant pulmonologist, Fortis
Source : Times of India
Source for image: http://www.lahey.org/Departments_and_Locations/Departments/Thoracic_Surgery/Lung_Cancer_Treatment.aspx
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Is it time to do our bit for the wheelchair bound ?
As it is life is hard sometimes. It is harder when you are responsible completely for a person bound to the wheelchair. It is hardest when you are doing it all alone.
Its blessing to be normal and this cannot be proven more when we see someone who is strapped to the wheels for life. Has anyone ever imagined what the life of the person behind the wheels is? It is usually a spouse, parent or a sibling whose selfless effort goes unnoticed. A typical day begins and ends with the person to be cared for. Every day is a typical day. And there are no breaks for the nights. The nights are on – call. So, if you really look at it, it is 24×7. Affording a full time help is out of dreaming options for many people.
In India, unfortunately and sadly there is nothing that will make the lives of these care takers any better. More so if you are not one of the rich. If it’s a husband-wife duo, there is not one place that they can go to other than the hospital. Don’t they deserve to enjoy the rich natural heritage our country has blessed upon us? Not a single ramp for wheel chairs in any public places. Why can’t they enjoy a cup of coffee at a coffee bar? Because there are no vehicles that can take them there. Getting in and out of a sedan is a daunting task. No buses are equipped to house a wheelchair. So, can we imagine a day without stepping out of our homes? These people are never going out. Not for coffee, not to the religious places of worship for inner peace, not to attend any family events, not for anything. I always thought that being amidst nature helped us grow spiritually and it gave me immense joy. I never thought that someone who is taking care of a special needs person needs it more than me. Not just the caretaker but the patient needs it too. All the more. When things are not going right for them they need to derive strength from some place and what better than nature to give them that strength they much need?
I wished for the sake of these people that our country became more friendly to such people so that the care givers can continue giving selfless love and support to their loved ones. Small changes in our society can make life changing changes to these lives. They are living too,remember? But rather a cursed life. A book club where a small book is read, a park where the children can play and watch other children or a ramp to a coffee place can make wonders. Let’s make someone’s life worthwhile. Let’s make a better India.
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Smart city’s storm water drains breeding diseases
When 68-year-old Padubidri Ganesh Prabhu shifted to Gundu Rao Lane, Mannagudda, five months ago, he had never imagined that he would regret this decision soon. He had to spend 12 days in a hospital as he suffered from dengue. He is still recuperating from the effects of the vector-borne disease, which has left him weak.
The cause for his problem and majority of others in the locality is the open storm water drain near his house. The sewage from the nearby apartments flows here and not only in Mannagudda, the whole storm water drain network in the city flows with filth and sewage , which is providing a healthy breeding ground for mosquitoes.
Prabhu said, “Locals say that the city corporation engineer had asked the apartments to direct the sewage into the drain as the existing Under Ground Drainage (UGD) system was unable to cope up with the increased load of new apartments. Prabhu , who was working in Bantwal, shifted to his ancestral house at Mannagudda after re-building it.
Source : Times of India
Image Source : http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/citizen-reporter/stories/Clogged-drain-troubles-BTM-layout/articleshow/55003565.cms
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You don’t want to wear helmet ? You straight away qualify to be an organ donor. Please register before your next ride, as we need you either ways
At least four of every 10 motorcyclist dying in road crashes can be saved, if they wear appropriate helmets, according to a recent study published by the United Nations. Going by this estimate, at least 15,000 motorcyclists in India can be saved annually, if riders use proper helmets.
India had the dubious record of maximum two-wheeler deaths at 36,800 and leaving at least 93,400 injured in 2015. Pointing out how motorised two-wheelers is one of the most unsafe mode of transport, the UN Motorcycle Helmet Study says, “Motorcyclists are 26 times more likely to die in road crash than drivers of passenger cars. Wearing an appropriate helmet improves their chances of survival by 42% and helps avoid 69% of injuries to riders.”
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The study estimates that up to 34 lakh deaths globally might result from motorcycle crashes between 2008 and 2020. “As many as 1.4 million (read 14 lakh) those fatalities can be avoided with the proper use of safety helmets,” it says. The report mentions how motorcycles are the main mode of transport in low and low-middle income countries and there is a greater need to take more steps to make this mode of transport safer. “Wearing a good helmet and tying it properly can prevent loss of lives in 90% cases. We call it helmet vaccine,” said Dr M C Misra, director and dean of AIIMS while speaking at “Powered Two-wheeler Safety Conference” for south-east Asia region at College of Traffic Management.
Road safety expert Rohit Baluja also said south-east Asia has this big problem of “motorcycle boom”. “In India, over 78% of vehicles are two-wheelers and in Vietnam their share is 95%. There is a need for this region to work together and to find solution to our problems,” he said. Baluja said while wearing helmet is more important for riders, everyone using the road must follow the rules and enforcement has to be the key for this.
The UN report estimates that in 2020, lower and lowermiddle income countries may see an increase in motorcycle fatalities by 99%. Considering the different requirement for countries in this region, the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE) has come out with fresh regulations, which allow manufacturing of lighter and smarter helmets. Manufacturing such helmets is likely to increase the usage of the safety gear in India and its neighbouring countries, an official of UNECE told TOI.
“We will showcase how such helmets are being manufactured and more countries can start producing similar ones,” said Lukasz Wyrowski, economic affairs officer of UNECE’s sustainable transport division.
Source: Times Of India
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Longest 100 mts of the road!
Everyone writes about road safety almost every other day. So, why should I write too? I must because it frustrates me everytime I come across people who drive on the wrong side of the road. Especially them! I have my own permissible road safety violations which I can forgive – like seat belt violation, speeding a little over the limit and things. Not that I do it but in my rule book it’s forgivable in my opinion but like I said the ones that come on the wrong side of the road annoy me to madness. Why? I think everytime, why do they do that?
Is it time they want to save by avoiding that extra 100 mts for the u-turn?
Is it fuel that they want to save by driving lesser distance?
Is it that they are genuinely unaware of the driving directions?
None of these come with any logical reasoning for me because they are spending more time by struggling to go in the opposite direction of normal traffic flow trying to look extra cautious. What irony!! They are also burning more fuel by waiting for traffic to reduce so they can make a dash for it. And if they are genuinely not aware of traffic rules, they mustn’t drive. Really!
What these ignorant ( or pretentinding to be ignorant) people don’t understand is they are a threat to the regular traffic. To all the pedestrians around and the people who follow traffic rules and signs. So please people, when you find someone driving the wrong side, stop them and embarrass them for saving money for the extra 100 mts. Especially the ones in big SUVs.
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Why India is a preferred health destination for the world ?
Medical tourism is a growing sector in India. In October 2015, India’s medical tourism sector was estimated to be worth US$3 billion. It is projected to grow to $7–8 billion by 2020. According to the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), the primary reason that attracts medical value travel to India is cost-effectiveness, and treatment from accredited facilities at par with developed countries at much lower cost. The Medical Tourism Market Report: 2015 found that India was “one of the lowest cost and highest quality of all medical tourism destinations, it offers wide variety of procedures at about one-tenth the cost of similar procedures in the United States.
Foreign patients travelling to India to seek medical treatment in 2012, 2013 and 2014 numbered 171,021, 236,898, and 184,298 respectively. Traditionally, the United States and the United Kingdom have been the largest source countries for medical tourism to India. However, according to a CII-Grant Thornton report released in October 2015, Bangladeshis and Afghans accounted for 34% of foreign patients, the maximum share, primarily due to their close proximity with India and poor healthcare infrastructure. Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) accounted for 30% share of foreign medical tourist arrivals. Other major sources of patients include Africa and the Middle East, particularly the Persian Gulf countries. In 2015, India became the top destination for Russians seeking medical treatment. Chennai, Jalandhar, Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad and the National Capital Region received the highest number of foreign patients primarily from South Eastern countries.
Why India is best for Health needs ?
Cost
Most estimates found that treatment costs in India start at around one-tenth of the price of comparable treatment in the United States or the United Kingdom. The most popular treatments sought in India by medical tourists are alternative medicine, bone-marrow transplant, cardiac bypass, eye surgery and hip replacement. India is known in particular for heart surgery, hip resurfacing and other areas of advanced medicine.
Quality of care
India has 28 JCI accredited hospitals. However, for a patient traveling to India, it is important to find the optimal Doctor-Hospital combination. After the patient has been treated, the patient has the option of either recuperating in the hospital or at a paid accommodation nearby. Many hospitals also give the option of continuing the treatment through telemedicine.
The city of Chennai has been termed “India’s health capital”. Multi- and super-specialty hospitals across the city bring in an estimated 150 international patients every day. Chennai attracts about 45 percent of health tourists from abroad arriving in the country and 30 to 40 percent of domestic health tourists. Factors behind the tourists inflow in the city include low costs, little to no waiting period, and facilities offered at the specialty hospitals in the city.[9] The city has an estimated 12,500 hospital beds, of which only half is used by the city’s population with the rest being shared by patients from other states of the country and foreigners. Dental clinics have attracted dental care tourism to Chennai.
Ease of travel
The government has removed visa restrictions on tourist visas that required a two-month gap between consecutive visits for people from Gulf countries which is likely to boost medical tourism. A visa-on-arrival scheme for tourists from select countries has been instituted which allows foreign nationals to stay in India for 30 days for medical reasons.
Language
Despite India’s diversity of languages, English is an official language and is widely spoken. In Noida, which is fast emerging as a hotspot for medical tourism, a number of hospitals have hired language translators to make patients from Balkan and African countries feel more comfortable while at the same time helping in the facilitation of their treatment.
Medisensehealth.com has been a front runner in providing Online Medical Opinion, Treatment Options & logistical support for international patients. This platform is a one-stop-shop for all the health needs of the patients. This platform has a tie-up with all the major Hospitals in India viz. Fortis, Apollo, Manipal and many more depending on the treatment sought by the patients. Following are the benefits for patients availing the healthcare facilities in India.
1. Online medical Opinion at the comfort of patient’s home. Just fill the form at www.medisensehealth.com/second-opinion
2. Patients can choose the specialists / hospitals or ask Medisense for recommendations.
3. Patients receive treatment options both in allopathic and Ayurvedic health streams.
4. Depending on the treatment options, cost details, treating doctor’s details will be sent to the patient.
5. Patients get a choice to speak to the consultant and his team through skype or phone.
6. If the patient decides to visit India, then medical Visa will be processed. Travel/accommodation can be arranged by the patients or else ask our coordinators to arrange for the same.
7. Post treatment in India, if patients wants to recuperate at a holiday destination like Goa, Agra or any area interest, just let our travel team know, they shall arrange for the same.
8. Post treatment support back in the home country of the patient will also be arranged by medisense.
Here is a cost comparison between India and UK / UK for major procedures www.medisensehealth.com/internatinal-patients
We are the single point of contact for all our international patients, while you are in India.
We wish you a healthy Life.
Source for statistics : wikipedia
Source for image : Unknown
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