Cancer cannot be declared as a notifiable disease, says Centre

The majority of tobacco addicts start in their teens. The government needs to focus its campaign against tobacco consumption by youth and since the “quit rate” in India is very low, the government should formulate strategies to stop the teen population from falling prey to tobacco addiction,” the Parliamentary Committee stated.

New Delhi: The Centre has ruled out the possibility of declaring cancer as a notifiable disease in the near future. “Cancer is a type of non-communicable disease. It is not an infectious disease. It doesn’t spread from one person to another or also doesn’t have any community spread. In present circumstances, it may not be declared as a notifiable disease,” the Health Ministry informed the Parliamentary Committee.

A notifiable disease is any disease that is required by law to be reported to government authorities. The collation of information allows the authorities to monitor the disease and provides early warning of possible outbreaks. The World Health Organisation’s International Health Regulations require disease reporting to the WHO in order to help with its global surveillance and advisory role. Making a disease legally notifiable by doctors and health professionals allows for intervention to control the spread of highly infectious diseases.

The Committee on Health and Family Welfare in its 147th report tabled in Parliament on Friday expressed concern over the alarming trend of increase in patients diagnosed with cancer and deaths due to cancer that is expected to rise from approximately eight lakhs in 2018 to about 13 lakhs in 2035.

It has been found that in India tobacco use in different forms accounts for nearly 50 per cent of all cancers, these are called tobacco-related cancers, so these cancers are preventable. “While thousands of crores are spent by both Central and State governments on the treatment of cancer, however, the desired focus is not given to its root cause like tobacco consumption.

The majority of tobacco addicts start in their teens. The government needs to focus its campaign against tobacco consumption by youth and since the “quit rate” in India is very low, the government should formulate strategies to stop the teen population from falling prey to tobacco addiction,” the Parliamentary Committee stated.