New Delhi: A new report titled “Road map for making cancer care affordable and accessible” in India was launched by FICCI-EY Parthenon, gathering insights from a year-long series of roundtable discussions organized in collaboration with the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare.
The report calls for a dedicated national policy on cancer care, with allocated funding for the six types of cancers most common in India. Currently, less than 30 per cent of districts in India have access to comprehensive cancer centers, creating significant healthcare disparities.
The report highlights India’s growing cancer burden. Official data recorded nearly 20 lakh cancer cases in 2022, but the real numbers could be 1.5 to 3 times higher. This high incidence rate is expected to keep rising, with the number of new cases potentially reaching 45 lakh in five to six years.
Dr Harsh Mahajan, Chair of the FICCI Health Services Committee and Founder and Chairman, Mahajan Imaging Labs said, “There is still scope for broader measures aimed at proactive cancer prevention and treatments. This whitepaper is a blueprint of action for policymakers, healthcare providers, and the community at large to transform the cancer care paradigm in India,” he added.
Srimayee Chakraborty, Partner, Healthcare Services, EY Parthenon India said,“Private-public partnerships can play a key role in driving the investment and innovation needed to make cancer care more efficient and accessible.”
Malti Sachdev of Siemens Healthcare pointed out that only 15 per cent of women undergo screenings for breast cancer, mainly due to fear and low awareness, adding financial strain on the system. She suggested that “India should adopt similar measures” to countries like Korea and Japan, which cover most cancer treatment costs and prioritize outcome-based healthcare.
The report recommends rolling out a Comprehensive National Cancer Care Policy/Program with funding outlay for the top six high-burden cancers. This policy should provide an umbrella cover for all stages and modalities of patient care, including diagnostics, medical, surgical, and radiation treatment.
The Government schemes should be updated such that in addition to the basic coverage provided, topping up could be done for specific disease groups like cancer after screening. A top-up cancer coverage increases the benefit amount to 3x-4x of basic coverage (e.g., from INR 5 lacs to INR 15-20 lacs) will significantly increase access to innovative cancer treatments and improve patient outcomes.
