Bengaluru: Pulitzer Prize winner Dr Siddharth Mukherjee said that the healthcare sector should be treated on par with nation-building and technologies should be made affordable and easier to use. Addressing the plenary session at the ‘Bengaluru Tech Summit-2021’ on Thursday, Dr Mukherjee said, “It is not a joke to build a nation. The progress of a nation is measured by discoveries and research activities.”
India has made rapid strides in computer science and information technology but it is unfortunate that people are unable to afford the high cost of cancer disease treatment even as the number of patients afflicted with the disease has risen. It is not possible for all Indian families to visit England, US, or Germany to undergo treatment for cancer and so it is necessary for investors to change their attitude.
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"India should constitute a commission on the American model to elevate the healthcare sector and get the recommendations in six-eight months. The government could provide land and funds with tax breaks and cuts to expedite the process," Dr Mukherjee added.
New methods of treatment have come up to treat cancer without radiotherapy and chemotherapy but they haven’t got the due recognition. He said if China could achieve success so could India.
He further said, "immunotherapy, gene therapy, and gene editing among others are gaining traction in the treatment of cancer disease and they have been effective in treating children suffering from cancer and others suffering from myeloma, lymphoma, and breast cancer."
Dr Mukherjee said he had floated nine companies in the US and had invested a huge amount to offer affordable treatment of cancer. One of the companies Vor had developed medicine to treat thalassemia, which has proven to be effective using gene-editing technology. The discussion was moderated by the chairman of the Vision Group on biotechnology Kiran Mazumdar Shaw.
