Increasing cases of Breast Cancer in India

As the Month of October is observed as ‘International Breast Cancer awareness month’, which highlights the instances of increasing cases of Breast Cancer in India.

• According to the highlights given by the Lok Sabha in July 2022, on National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research (NCDIR), Registry Program report, in 2020, which state that more than two lakh women were estimated to have been diagnosed with breast cancer and there were an estimated 76,000 deaths in the country.
• This data had become a cause of concern amongst policymakers regarding increasing health issues related to Women.
• It said that. the estimated number of breast cancer cases per one lakh women in 2020 in Telangana was 40.2, way above the Indian average of 31.3.
• Telangana is ranked fifth after Kerala, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka, among the States with the incidence of breast cancers, as per the data revealed in the Lok Sabha.
• There have been several awareness campaigns against ‘Breast Cancer, as part of the International Breast Cancer Awareness month – October.

About breast cancer:

• Breast cancer is a disease in which cells in the breast grow out of control.
• There are different kinds of breast cancer. The kind of breast cancer depends on which cells in the breast turn into cancer.
• Breast cancer can begin in different parts of the breast.
• A breast is made up of three main parts: lobules, ducts, and connective tissue.
• Breast cancer can spread outside the breast through blood vessels and lymph vessels. When breast cancer spreads to other parts of the body, it is said to have metastasized.

• Symptoms of breast cancer include a lump in the breast, bloody discharge from the nipple, and changes in the shape or texture of the nipple or breast.
• A healthy lifestyle, nutritious food, regular exercise, and preventive medical checks after a certain age keep breast cancer at bay. It can also be curable by chemotherapy, radiation, hormone therapy, and surgery.

Recent Government Interventions

• National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS): Under NPCDCS, NCD Cells are being established at National, State and District levels for programme management, and NCD Clinics are being set up at District and CHC levels, to provide services for early diagnosis, treatment and follow-up for common NCDs.
• Provision has been made under the programme to provide free diagnostic facilities and drugs for patients attending the NCD clinics.