The Health department is launching a people’s campaign to promote cancer prevention and early detection and cancer care. This is a big step forward for the Health department in the area of early screening and cancer care and one which will be taken forward with public-private partnership, Health Minister Veena George said on Saturday.
She was releasing the logo of the “Arogyam, Anandam – Keep cancer away” campaign at Pathanamthitta.
The Minister said the Health department has planned an year-long campaign activities and that the first phase would focus on cancers specifically affecting women, such as cervical cancer and breast cancer. Early screening, detection and care of cervical and breast cancer will be taken up by the Health department in a big way, the Minister said.
The population-based health screening survey held as part of Aardram Mission 2, utilising the Shylee app, had revealed that at least nIne lakh persons in the State were at high risk of developing cancer. However, of these nine lakh, only 1.5 lakh persons had come forward for follow-up treatment
Many cancer patients reach hospitals for treatment in very later stages citing various reasons, by which time it is usually too late to treat the cancer. This leads to a rise in cancer mortality in the State. The State wants to take up the people’s campaign on early screening and early treatment of cancers in a big way so that all cancers amenable to early treatment can be picked up and treated appropriately and lives saved, Ms. George said.
The logo of the campaign was released in the presence of Kudumbashree workers in Pathanamthitta.
K.U Janeesh Kumar, MLA, local body leaders, District Medical Officer L. Anitakumari, Arogyakeralam district programme manager S. Sreekumar, among others, were present on the occasion.
Published – February 01, 2025 09:12 pm IST