Over 6.8 million cancer treatments conducted under PMJAY, with the majority in rural areas: Health Minister Nadda
Nadda asserted that 75.81 percent of these treatment facilities were available in rural areas.
Health Minister J P Nadda said on Tuesday that the Ayushman Bharat health insurance policy has covered over 68 lakh cancer treatments at over Rs 13,000 crore.
Nadda asserted that 75.81 percent of these treatment facilities were available in rural areas.
More than 4.5 lakh treatments worth over Rs 985 crore were carried out for "targeted therapies" against cancer, with 76.32 percent of the beneficiaries coming from rural regions, Nadda said in response to a question in Parliament. The benefits, he explained, were provided by the Centre's Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PMJAY).
He stated that the country's National Health Mission had launched an initiative for the screening, management, and prevention of non-communicable diseases, including cancer. Under the system, people who fear they have cancer can get specialist advice from district and tertiary care institutions.
PMJAY offers treatment for a variety of malignancies, including breast, oral, and cervical, through more than 200 packages and over 500 treatments in medical oncology, surgical oncology, radiation oncology, and palliative medicine. The minister stated that 37 of these packages are connected to targeted medicines, such as chemotherapy for CA Breast, metastatic melanoma, chronic myeloid leukemia, Burkitt's lymphoma, and CA Lung.
Those suffering from cancer and living below the poverty line can also receive one-time financial help of up to Rs 15 lakh under the Health Minister's Cancer Patient Fund. The minister stated that the initiative allows generic drugs to be sold for 50% to 80% of the price of branded medicines through Janaushadhi Stores and 217 AMRIT Pharmacies.
A total of 289 cancer medications are distributed for half the market price. Nadda stated that the government has indicated in the budget that it will establish 200 daycare cancer centers at district hospitals in 2025-26.
The National Programme for Prevention and Control of Noncommunicable Diseases (NP-NCD) has established 770 district NCD clinics, 233 cardiac care units, 372 district daycare facilities, and 6,410 NCD clinics at community health centers.
In addition, 19 state cancer institutes and 20 tertiary cancer care centers have been established across the country to provide advanced cancer treatment. All 22 new AIIMS, including diagnostic, medicinal, and surgical facilities, have been approved for cancer treatment, he said.
Two such centers for advanced cancer treatment are the National Cancer Institute in Jhajjar, Haryana, which has 1,460 beds, and the Chittranjan National Cancer Institute's second campus in Kolkata, which has 460 beds. According to Nadda, there are 372 District Day Care Centres that provide chemotherapy across the country.
The minister stated that Tata Memorial Centre, which operates under the Department of Atomic Energy, has two units/hospitals in rural and semi-urban areas: the Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital in Sangrur, Punjab, and the Homi Bhabha Cancer Hospital in Muzzafarpur, Bihar.