Lack of radiation therapy centre at Cama hits cancer treatment in Mumbai | Mumbai News – Times of India

MUMBAI: For more than a year, shutdown of the radiation therapy centre at Cama & Albless Hospital in Fort has severely disrupted cancer treatment for numerous women and children who cannot afford private hospital care. The situation is dire since this state-operated facility was one of merely three centres within the city offering free or reasonably priced radiotherapy treatment, which otherwise can cost up to Rs 3 lakh. Furthermore, it was the sole dedicated women’s facility in the entire state.
The linear accelerator machine that delivered targeted radiotherapy was deemed unfit for use last May after a decade of service. In its absence, patients are either redirected to BYL Nair Hospital that has a limited capacity or to the Tata Memorial Centre in Parel, where an already significant patient load exists. Since its commencement in 2013, the machine has facilitated treatment for over 81,100 patients with conditions such as breast and cervical cancer, leukemia, and others.
Although the hospital has submitted two proposals, one to the state government and another to the collector’s office, seeking approval for the acquisition of two machines, it is unlikely that patient treatments can commence any time within a year. In addition to procurement and installment, the building may require extensive renovations, too, as previously, there were concerns of radiation leak. TOI has learnt that the proposal to the state government was sent almost eight months ago, and the one to the collector’s office was nearly two months ago. There has been minimal progress since.

Dr Tushar Palve, medical superintendent, said a proposal to procure a linear accelerator at the cost of Rs 38 crore has been sent to the medical education department, while a second proposal to buy a cobalt machine costing Rs 6-7 crore has been sent to the collector’s office. “We hope to expedite the procurements as soon as the proposals get approved. The linear accelerator proposal also includes the price of procuring a CT simulator that is needed for treatment planning,” he said. Sources said the linear accelerator proposal has been cleared by the Directorate of Medical Education and Research (DMER), but is awaiting clearance from the medical education secretary’s office.
The husband of a 42-year-old woman from Mumbra, who underwent treatment at Tata Memorial Centre last year, since the Cama centre was defunct, said that his wife was extremely nervous on visiting Tata and nearly dropped out of treatment. “We convinced her for treatment at Cama since it’s a women’s hospital and relatively less crowded. But we ultimately ended up in Tata,” he said, adding that Greater Mumbai desperately needs more public radiation centres. For patients coming from outstations, it has been more challenging as they have to arrange accommodation. Patients receiving treatment at Cama were previously accommodated within the hospital premises.
Dr Tejal Suralkar, radiation oncologist of Cama Hospital, said they try to make appointments at Tata Hospital beforehand so that the radiation cycles can start on time. Depending on the kind of cancer, women need anywhere between 15 to 25 cycles. For outstation patients, efforts are made to link them with private hospitals in their hometowns if those hospitals are part of the Mahatma Jyotirao Phule Jan Arogya Yojana network, she said.
Meanwhile, the demand for more public radiotherapy machines was echoed by other centres too. Dr Sarbani Ghosh Laskar of Tata Memorial Hospital said there was a big gap between demand and supply in the city. Tata, which offers radiotherapy to nearly 400 patients in a day through nine machines, still has a wait time of 3-5 weeks. Emergency cases are treated out of queue and quickly, she said.
At BYL Nair Hospital, which has a cobalt machine, around 30 patients are treated in a day. However, this centre too faces machine breakdowns from time to time. In contrast, the city houses over a dozen private radiotherapy centers, with fees typically ranging between Rs 1.8 lakh and 3.5 lakh.