Govt hospitals stop cancer cure

New Delhi: Cancer treatment in the Capital is starting to become a nightmare for the common man. Government hospitals are refusing to take in patients, as they don't have the manpower for treatment.

Radiation therapy, a vital part of the cancer treatment, is simply not being offered at Delhi's premier government hospitals.

More than 10,000 cancer patients in Delhi have been left in the lurch. Two premier hospitals run by the Delhi government and one by the central Government just do not have functioning radiotherapy departments. In the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital (LNJP), the waiting rooms of its radiotherapy department are empty and cancer patients in desperate need of radiotherapy are being turned away.

Oncologist at LNJP hospital Dr Mohanty says, “At this moment we are having some problems. We are not treating any new patients. “

The reason: LNJP Hospital does not have a medical physicist to supervise radiotherapy. The machines rust and cancer patients are being turned away.

“The cancer will keep on growing and once it grows then it will spread to other parts of the body and the stage will increase. The mortality and the morbidity will also go up so you will have people dying of a disease from which they probably wouldn’t,” says Dr Sameer Kaul, Senior Oncologist, Apollo Hospital.

Even at Safdarjung Hospital, the story is the same. Radiotherapy machines don’t have technical hands for two years.

Oncology Department, Safdarjung Hospital, nurse says, “Machines are here but there is no one to man them. Its bad for patients because they have to go elsewhere where usually there is a long waiting list.”

Machines are there, but there is no one to man them. It’s bad for the patients because they have to go elsewhere where the waiting period is too long.

Naresh, who brought his 70-year-old terminally ill father from Meerut for treatment at Safdarjung hospital, left with empty hand as doctors refused the treatment.

Naresh says, "They have admitted my father for three days. Radiation over here is shut; they are asking us to go outside for treatment.”

So if anybody is coming to the Capital for cancer treatment, chances are that Government run hospitals like the Guru Teg Bahadur will refuse for the treatment. Here's a reality check.

GTB Hospital employee says, "Radiotherapy will take sometime to start perhaps another 3-4 months. Machines have been here for a year and a half already but there are no technicians."

Finding a few trained personnel could save the lives of 1000s of cancer patients. Yet, at the moment the hospitals have no explanation for this sorry situation.

(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and Pinterest)