As we all are hopeful for a vaccine or therapy for the
coronavirus pandemic, such may not be the case for some of the
other diseases that kill
millions of people. Almost 10 million people die of cancer
every year, and India alone accounts for about 1 million
deaths. Unlike adult cancers, Pediatric cancers are treatable
most of the time. However, up to 70% of children in India who
succumb to the disease are not diagnosed early or treated
appropriately.
World Health Organisation (WHO) has a tool on its website that
predicts the future cancer incidence and mortality burden
worldwide until 2040, and the figure is most disturbing,
particularly in India, as we have much to do to not only
effectively treat the disease but also to detect it early.
Much needed solutions are missing in our system. If detected
early and if the pediatrician has the advice of a Pediatric
oncologist, the majority of pediatric cancers can be treated
at the primary care location itself.
This would not only enhance outcomes but also
significantly reduce the load on our overburdened tertiary
care system for cancer. It will eliminate the emotional and
financial distress for thousands of families who endure the
child’s hospitalization.
Indian Academy of Pediatrics (IAP) has been pursuing various
strategies to create a program that can empower all our
pediatric clinics with tools and support to detect cancer
early and to start appropriate therapy. I am glad to inform
you that a promising solution has been initiated by IAP, which
will go a long way towards creating a national solution for
Pediatric cancer and help to save more lives than we currently
do.
CATCH PEDIATRIC CANCER PROGRAM
The Catch Pediatric Cancer (CPC) Program of IAP and IIT Madras
is a national program for early detection and treatment of
cancer in children. CPC is an initiative of the IAP and Indian
Institute of Technology Madras (IITM) and the National Cancer
Tissue Biobank, a national facility financed by the Ministry
of Science and Technology, Government of India.
We are working hard to launch the service in the second half
of this year. The service will be available to the 130 million
children who are treated annually by our member pediatricians.
The CPC program will include simple detection guidelines for
our doctors, tele-access to a pediatric oncologist, and
locally available, compre-hensive cancer diagnostics
capabilities. The components of the program are:
•
Training program for pediatricians on Pediatric Cancer
Detection Guidelines for common cancers - delivered by IAP;
•
Local sample collection and diagnostics service -
delivered by IIT Madras; and
•
Pediatric oncologists panel to give pediatricians
pre-diagnostic counseling and post-detection therapy support,
along with a legal and technology secured telemedicine and
diagnostic support system - delivered by IAP.
CPC creates an inflow of tissue samples for the National
Cancer Tissue Biobank, thus creating an Indian pediatric
cancer genomic database. This will enable superior therapies
in the future and enhance outcomes for South Asian children.
Cancer is a severe disease that requires immediate expert
care. Recognizing the possible warning signs of cancer and
taking quick action is the key to early diagnosis. Increased
awareness of possible warning signs of cancer among doctors
can have a significant impact on the disease. The CPC program
is a commitment from IAP to lead and drive a movement for
change.
As doctors, our mantra has always been “prevention is
better than cure.” But in the case of cancer, I would like to
tweak the above mantra slightly, “Early detection is better
than stage four.” We aim to be the pioneers in the adoption
and execution of such a program. We will do this at a national
level by making it available to all our members at the
earliest.
Jai Hind!
Jai IAP!