Govt aims to screen 4.07 cr people for cancer: Minister

Ongole: Health Minister Y Satya Kumar Yadav on Tuesday attended the cancer screening camp held at Edugundlapadu village of Maddipadu mandal in Prakasam district as the chief guest, along with actress and chairperson of the Life Again Foundation Gautami.

Speaking at the event, the minister emphasised that cancer can be conquered through proper awareness and timely medical treatment. He highlighted that non-communicable diseases have become a major challenge, with cancer accounting for 17 per cent of global deaths according to data from the World Health Organisation.

He said that the state government has decided to conduct cancer screening tests for all women above 18 years of age in the state, a programme that began on November 14 last year.

While the government aimed to screen 4.07 crore people in six months, only 95 lakh people have undergone screening so far, which he attributed to a lack of awareness. Among those screened, the minister informed that suspicious symptoms were detected in 37,000 people for oral cancer, over 26,000 for cervical cancer, and 25,000 for breast cancer.

He said in Yedugundlapadu village alone, 11 suspected cancer cases were identified among 329 people screened – ten cases related to oral cancer and one to breast cancer. The minister emphasised that 63% of cancers are preventable, while 37% are difficult to prevent due to genetic factors.

Actress Gautami, a cancer survivor herself, encouraged people not to lose hope upon cancer diagnosis but to face it courageously. She shared her personal journey of being diagnosed with breast cancer just four years after losing her mother, and her daughter was just under five years old.

District collector A Thameem Ansariya reported that among the people who were screened for cancer so far in the district, over 37,000 suspected oral cancer cases, over 24,000 breast cancer cases, and over 26,000 cervical cancer cases were identified.

The event concluded with attendees taking a pledge to undergo cancer screening.

Local MLAs Damacharla Janardan Rao and BN Vijay Kumar, DMHO T Venkateswarlu, and other officials and public representatives participated in the programme.