Spotlight on killer disease

The Telegraph

Monday, April 27, 2009

Calcutta, India

Many women in Calcutta know who Jade Goody is, but precious few know what killed her.

The Celebrity Big Brother star — and Shilpa Shetty’s foe-turned-friend — died of cervical cancer, a disease that kills 80,000 women in India every year, but about which there is hardly any awareness, experts said on Sunday.

A recent study conducted by Chittranjan National Cancer Institute, Calcutta, revealed the low level of awareness about cervical cancer in the city. The study focused on affluent urban couples in the city and its suburbs.

“More than 35 per cent of those surveyed had not heard of cervical cancer,” Partha Basu, the head of the department of gynaecological oncology at the institute, said at a conference on chalking out a roadmap for controlling cervical cancer in India, held in the city on Sunday.

“In the UK, (Jade) Goody’s death became a big issue because they have a system of regular screening for cervical cancer there,” he said.

Basu said the 11th Five Year Plan had allocated Rs 2,400 crore for the national cancer control programme but there was no specific focus on control, screening and prevention of cervical cancer.

“There are simple, low-cost methods of pre-cervical cancer detection but since they are not part of public health programmes, people don’t benefit from them,” he said.

According to experts, low- cost tests like visual inspection with acetic acid (vinegar) is a simple procedure, which can be conducted even by primary health workers.

“Once a cancer threat is detected, the patient can be cured through simple treatments,” said Basu.

“Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccines were launched in India recently but they are costly. So awareness and prevention programmes are very important,” said Martha Jacob of PATH, a voluntary organisation working on spreading awareness on cervical cancer and its prevention and the organiser of the conference.

An HPV vaccine costs more than $200 in India.

“In our state, the cancer control programme is mainly curative. We are planning to launch a drive on awareness and screening,” said Satyaban Ghosh, the assistant director of health services (oncology) of the state health department.

“It can be started in three months and we will incorporate some recommendations of this conference, too,” he added.