By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 13 Dec: The Cancer Research Institute, Swami Rama Himalayan University, organised a one day conference on 10 December on ‘Recent Advances in Oncological Treatment’. The centre is the first in Uttarakhand to provide all oncological services like surgery, chemotherapy and radiation since 2008.
This cancer research institute was the vision of Vice Chancellor Dr Vijay Dhasmana and the Director, Cancer Research, Dr Sunil Saini, who got installed radiation machines in 2008. It is the only centre in Uttarakhand to provide comprehensive care in this region. It is fully equipped with all the facilities of cancer treatment like surgery, radiation, chemotherapy, PET CT, bone scan and bone marrow transplant unit.
The Radiation Oncology Department was started in 2013 under the guidance of Dr Mushtaq Ahmad, when he joined as Professor and Head of the Department. By that time, the department started a post graduation course. The Department has flourished over the years in the hands of Dr Mushtaq Ahmad and Dr Meenu Gupta.
The focus of the conference was recent advances in the management of cancer, especially on stereotactic radiation and how advanced imaging and radiotherapy techniques should be applied and the new challenges in this field. The role of Stereotactic Radiation in various types of malignancies and its advantages in terms of minimum side effects and good cancer control were discussed.
Over the last thirty years, the world has seen some great advances in cancer diagnostics with the advent of Computerised Tomography (CT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), and Positron Emission Tomography (PET). These advances in imaging have enabled great advances in radiotherapy treatment planning, making it more precise, leading to higher cure rates and sparing healthy tissues at the same time.
Eminent chairpersons, speakers, panelists and delegates from various fields such as Surgery, Medical Oncology and Radiation Oncology from various institutes like AIIMS Rishikesh, Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Research Institute, Medanta Medicity, Gurugram, Max Hospital, Delhi and Dehradun, and Oncosurgeons and Oncology clinicians from Dehradun joined the conference.
Esteemed professionals including Vice Chancellor Dr Vijay Dhasmana, Pro VC Dr Vijendra Chauhan, Dean and Principal Dr Ashok Deorari, Director, Hospital Services, Dr Mushtaq Ahmad, Director, CRI, Dr Sunil Saini, Director, Strategic planning, Research and Development, Dr Rajender Dobhal, CMS Dr SL Jethani were also present.
The conference was an academic feast for the students as it helped them understand the recent updated management protocols not only for academic purposes but also to inculcate the same in their daily practice.
Dr Vipul Nautiyal, Organising Secretary, said that the incidence of cancer is increasing with approximately reported burden of incidence being 19 to 20 lakh people in India, alone. In the global comparison for organ-wise incidence of cancer, the disease burden for head and neck, breast, cervix and ovary cancers in India is higher if not at par with other countries like China, the US and the UK. It has been reported that cancer of the head and neck are found to be progressing at a CAGR of 23 per cent, prostate cancer at 19 per cent, ovarian cancer at 11 per cent and breast cancer at eight per cent, which is faster than the overall growth rate of incidence. With developing techniques, such as SBRT, the precision of treatment delivery would mean minimal damage to the healthy surrounding tissues and maximum damage to the tumor site. In most cases, radiosurgery has a lower risk of side effects compared with other types of traditional surgery or radiation therapy. Stereotactic radiation is used for various malignant and benign tumors which include cranial as well as extracranial locations. Sterotactic radiation is a form of radiation in which without any incision and surgery the tumor cells can be ablated.
