NEW DELHI: India is reporting higher childhood cancer deaths as compared to some of the developed countries like the UK and Canada due to various reasons, mainly delayed diagnosis, lack of access to treatment, shortage of skilled workforce, lack of beds, and need of equipment, said a latest first-of-its-kind comprehensive report

The report by the National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research (NCDIR) under the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Bengaluru, in collaboration with the World Health Organisation (WHO)-India, said childhood cancers (0-14 years) comprise four per cent of all reported cancers in the ICMR-NCDIR’s national cancer registry programme.

According to Dr Prashant Mathur, Director, NCDIR, they found barriers in providing timely and optimal treatment to children with cancers in the country. 

“Delayed diagnosis and treatment could lead to higher rates of deaths and poor survival,” Mathur said, adding that the study is the first of its kind comprehensive report covering 26 states and four union territories in India to assess infrastructure, facilities, drug availability, finances, skills, training, research and barriers towards optimal childhood cancer care services.

The report, ‘A situational analysis of childhood cancer care services in India 2022,’ said the age-adjusted incidence rate (AAR) of childhood cancer (0-14 years) worldwide is 140.6 per million person-years. 

In India, New Delhi shows the highest AARpm among boys (203.1) and girls (125.4), while in southern India, Chennai ranks second among boys (146.7) and third among girls (52.7) in childhood cancer incidence.

In the northeast, the AARpm was the highest in Aizawl among boys and girls (133.9 and 91.4, respectively). The study found a higher incidence in males compared to females.

The study said nearly 49 percent of paediatric cancers in India remain undiagnosed. “Delayed diagnosis and treatment lead to poorer outcomes. Inadequate/incomplete treatment prolongs the disease and its associated complications. These children are unable to attain optimal growth and development,” he added.

The study, based on a survey in 137 tertiary level hospitals, and 92 secondary level hospitals, said the most common primary sites of pediatric cancers include blood, bone, and brain.

Some of the most common malignancies include leukaemia, lymphoma, central nervous system (CNS), tumours of the bone and soft tissue and “blastomas” that affect different solid organs. 

He added that the current cancer control initiatives are more tuned to deal with adult cancers. “A childhood cancer policy is the need of the hour,” he said, adding that there is a need to create awareness among doctors who deal with children, other health professionals, parents and society. 

The report found that the lack of essential infrastructure for diagnosing and treating childhood cancer – seen equally in both public and private hospitals – is one of the significant causes of treatment abandonment, ranging between 10-63 per cent.

The report also said that the proportion of children affected might be higher owing to “missed cases” due to low coverage, lack of awareness, delayed diagnosis and a fledgling electronic referral system.

A Brief Look at the Study

Childhood cancer care services were provided at over one-third (39.1%) of the secondary level hospitals, which was higher for private (56.5%) than public (32.8%) hospitals

Dedicated paediatric oncology departments were available in less than half of the public and private tertiary hospitals.

At public tertiary hospitals, less than half of the hospitals had a pediatric oncologist (48%), pediatric Oncosurgeon (14.2%), pediatric intensivist (38.9%), medical oncologist (46.7%) and palliative care physician (37.6%).

In secondary-level public hospitals, treatment was mainly through pediatric medicine departments.

Shortage of hospice care services at tertiary hospitals and medical social services at secondary hospitals 

Over three-quarters (76.6%) of the public tertiary hospitals adopted a multidisciplinary team approach for childhood cancer treatment, compared to 35% of the private hospitals.

Availability of a dedicated pediatric oncology department at tertiary hospitals: public – (41.6%); private- (48.6%); charitable- (64%)

39.1% of secondary-level hospitals provide childhood cancer care services.

Less than 50% of the tertiary hospitals provided hospice care, play therapy and parental support groups

Less than half of the public tertiary hospitals, palliative care drugs, antineoplastic drugs, and targeted therapies were available in stock

Drugs for palliative care, antineoplastic drugs and targeted therapies were available, free of cost, at less than 50% of the public tertiary hospitals.

The most commonly adopted financing mechanism was comprised of the Ayushman Bharat Scheme at public tertiary level hospitals (81.8%) and secondary level public hospitals (61.9%)

Most paediatric cancer care centres in India are in urban areas, leading to delayed access by the rural population.

Less than 35% of the public and charitable tertiary level hospitals provide Haemopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT)

Over two-thirds of public tertiary hospitals had referral linkages with lower-tier non-childhood cancer-speciality treating facilities, versus 45.7% of private hospitals

Over 80% of the tertiary hospitals had facilities for CT scans, MRI and ultrasonograms; however, the availability of bone scans and PET scans was lower, especially in public sector hospitals

NEW DELHI: India logged 5,108 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,45,10,057, while the active cases dipped to 45,749, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Wednesday.

The death toll climbed to 52,82,16 with 19 fatalities, which includes 12 deaths reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprise 0.10 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate increased to 98.71 per cent, the ministry said.

The daily positivity rate stood at 1.44 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 1.70 per cent.

A total of 89.02 crore COVID-19 tests have been conducted so far and 3,55,231 tests were conducted in the last 24 hours.

As many as 215.67 crore total vaccine doses, including 94.57 crore second dose and 18.70 crore precaution doses have been administered so far under the nationwide vaccination drive.

A total of 19,25,881 doses were administered in the last 24 hours, the ministry said.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year.

It crossed the four-crore mark on January 25 this year.

NEW DELHI: India saw a single-day rise of 4,417 new coronavirus infections, the lowest in last three months, taking the tally of Covid-19 cases to 4,44,66,862, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Tuesday,

Active Covid cases have further declined to 52,336, while the death toll has climbed to 5,28,030 with 23 fatalities, including one death reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am showed.

India had reported 3,714 new cases in a span of 24 hours on June 6. Active cases comprises 0.12 per cent of the total infections while the national Covid-19 recovery rate has increased to 98.69 per cent, the health ministry said.

A decline of 1,638 cases has been recorded in the active Covid-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 1.20 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 2.06 per cent, according to the health ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,38,86,496, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent.

According to the ministry, 213.72 crore doses of Covid vaccines have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide Covid-19 vaccination drive.

India’s Covid-19 tally crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

India crossed the grim milestone of two crores on May 4, three crore on June 23 last year and four crores on January 25 this year.

NEW DELHI: India saw a single-day rise of 12,608 new coronavirus infections taking the total tally of Covid-19 cases to 4,42,98,864, while the active cases declined to 1,01,343, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday

The national death toll climbed to 5,27,206 with 72 fatalities, including 29 fatalities by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprised 0.23 per cent of the total infections, as the national Covid-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.58 per cent, the health ministry said.

A decline of 3,715 cases was recorded in the active Covid-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The daily positivity rate was recorded at 3.48 per cent, and weekly at 4.20 per cent, according to the health ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease has surged to 4,36,70,315. The overall fatality rate to date stands at 1.19 per cent.

According to the ministry, 208.95 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide Covid-19 vaccination drive.

India’s Covid-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020. It crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4, 2021, and four crore on January 25 this year.

The 43 new fatalities composed of eight from Delhi, six from Maharashtra, five from Haryana, four each from Punjab and West Bengal, three from Karnataka, two each from Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Odisha, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh and one each from Chandigarh, Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

NEW DELHI: India’s Covid-19 case tally increased by 8,813 in a day to reach 4,42,77,194, while active infections have declined to 1,11,252, according to the Union Health Ministry data on Tuesday.

The death toll has climbed to 5,27,098 with 29 more fatalities, including one death reconciled by Kerala, the data updated at 8 am stated.

Active cases declined by 6,256 in a day and now comprise 0.25 per cent of the total infections, while the national Covid-19 recovery rate was at 98.56 per cent, the health ministry said.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,36,38,844, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.19 per cent. The daily positivity rate was 4.15 per cent while the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 4.79 per cent, according to the health ministry. It said that 208.31 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far.

India’s Covid-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

India crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 last year, three crore on June 23 and four crore on January 25 this year.

The 28 new fatalities include eight from Delhi, six from Punjab, two each from Gujarat, Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttar Pradesh, and one each from Assam, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Maharashtra, Nagaland, Odisha, Sikkim and Tripura.

NEW DELHI: With India recording the eighth monkeypox case, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya on Tuesday told Parliament that the government was taking a step-by-step approach to tackle the disease and there was no need to panic.

“Monkeypox is not a new disease in India and the world. Since 1970, many cases have been reported from Africa. Before the first case in Kerala, we had issued guidelines to all states,” he said.

On Tuesday, two more monkeypox cases were reported – one each from Kerala and Delhi – taking the total number of cases to eight. Of the eight cases – five were from Kerala, all of whom had a history of travel from the UAE and three from Delhi with no travel history. India on Monday confirmed its first Monkeypox death, the first in Asia, of a 22-year-old man who had returned from the UAE.

Meanwhile, Delhi’s first case, a 34-year-old man, was discharged, while the third confirmed case was admitted to the Lok Nayak Hospital. The patient is an African national living in Delhi for several years and had no recent international travel history.

The patient was referred by a dispensary after showing symptoms, including swollen lymph nodes and rashes and fever, of the disease. “His condition is stable. We are keeping him under observation,” said a doctor in the dermatology department of the hospital.

One more suspected case was also admitted to the hospital. The woman, too, is of African origin. Her samples have been sent to NIV- Pune for tests, according to doctors. 

India writes to WHO in UAE to check air passengers

India has written to the WHO representative in the UAE to ensure that air passengers showing symptoms of monkeypox are not allowed to board flights, to minimise the risk of disease transmission.

The Union Health Ministry referred to three cases, including that of a 22-year-old from Kerala who died of Monkeypox but was allowed to board a flight from UAE to India, despite testing positive for the viral disease.

“It is requested that exit screening of may be intensified to ensure that persons exhibiting symptoms suggestive of monkeypox are not allowed to board the flight to minimise the risk of disease transmission,” Joint Secretary Lav Agarwal said in the letter to executive director and IHR Focal Point, UAE, Dr Hussain Abdul Rahman Ali Rand. 

NEW DELHI: With 17,135 new coronavirus infections reported in a day, India’s infection tally rose to 4,40,67,144, while the active cases have declined to 1,37,057, according to the Union health ministry data updated on Wednesday.

The COVID-19 death toll has climbed to 5,26,477 with 47 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprise 0.31 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.49 per cent, the ministry said.

A decrease of 2,735 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours. The daily positivity rate was recorded at 3.69 per cent. The weekly positivity rate was recorded at 4.67 per cent, according to the health ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,34,03,610, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.20 per cent.

According to the ministry, 204.84 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide COVID-19 vaccination drive.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

India crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4, three crore on June 23 last year and four crore on January 25 this year.

NEW DELHI: With 13,734 new coronavirus infections being reported in a day, India’s tally of COVID-19 cases has risen to 4,40,50,009, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Tuesday.

The death toll has climbed to 5,26,430 with 27 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated. The active cases have declined to 1,39,792. They comprise 0.32 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.49 per cent, the ministry said.

A decrease of 4,197 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year. It crossed the four-crore mark on January 25 this year.

PATNA: Senior officials of the state health department are virtually on their toes after another suspected case of monkeypox was detected in Bihar’s Nalanda district on Wednesday.

A senior official of the health department said, “A man with symptoms of monkeypox was admitted to hospital in Nalanda today. Samples were collected and sent for test to National Institute of Virology at Pune.”

The official said the test report would be available in four-five days. Till then, the patient, stated to be a resident of Rajgir in Nalanda district, has been asked to stay in home isolation, the official revealed.

The officials of Nalanda health department are monitoring the line of treatment. Earlier, a woman was found to be suffering from monkeypox in Patna City’s Gurhatta locality. A medical team from Patna Medical College and Hospital collected sample of the woman for test.

The officials said that the state didn’t have the testing facility. So the samples were sent to National Institute of Virology at Pune. “Normally it takes four-five days to get the test report,” Patna civil surgeon Dr KK Rai said.

On Monday, Bihar Health Minister Mangal Pandey held a high level meeting with senior officials of the department. The minister directed the department officials to make people aware of symptoms of the viral zoonotic disease as per the guidelines of the union government and the World Health Organisation (WHO).

According to medical experts, the disease has similar symptoms to smallpox, although it has less clinical severity. The health department officials across the state have been asked to follow standard operating procedures while dealing with the infected people.

On July 23, the WHO declared declared Monkeypox a global public health emergency of international concern.

NEW DELHI: India added 20,557 new coronavirus infections pushing the total tally of COVID-19 cases to 4,39,59,321, while the active cases increased to 1,46,323, according to the Union Health Ministry data updated on Thursday.

The death toll climbed to 5,26,211 with 44 new fatalities, the data updated at 8 am stated.

The active cases comprise 0.33 per cent of the total infections, while the national COVID-19 recovery rate was recorded at 98.47 per cent, the ministry said.

An increase of 1,297 cases has been recorded in the active COVID-19 caseload in a span of 24 hours.

According to the ministry, 203.21 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive.

The daily positivity rate was recorded at 5.18 per cent and the weekly positivity rate was recorded at 4.71 per cent, according to the ministry.

The number of people who have recuperated from the disease surged to 4,32,86,787, while the case fatality rate was recorded at 1.20 per cent.

According to the ministry, 203.21 crore doses of Covid vaccine have been administered in the country so far under the nationwide vaccination drive.

India’s COVID-19 tally had crossed the 20-lakh mark on August 7, 2020, 30 lakh on August 23, 40 lakh on September 5 and 50 lakh on September 16.

It went past 60 lakh on September 28, 70 lakh on October 11, crossed 80 lakh on October 29, 90 lakh on November 20 and surpassed the one-crore mark on December 19.

The country crossed the grim milestone of two crore on May 4 and three crore on June 23 last year.

It crossed the four-crore mark on January 25 this year.

The 44 new fatalities include 12 from Kerala, eight from Maharashtra, five from West Bengal, two each from Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Manipur and Tripura and one each from Assam, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Odisha and Sikkim.