Offering holistic cancer care

Mrs. Rajashree Birla talks about Aditya Birla Centre for Community Initiative and Rural Development’s work in cancer care

“Over the last decade, we have been working wholeheartedly to bring succour to cancer afflicted children. In India, children constitute
over 3 per cent of cancer cases, a whopping 50,000. Up until now, we have reached out to over 4,000 children. Extending financial support for the chemotherapy sessions. Encouraging them in a holistic manner to get back quickly on the road to recovery.

You will be astonished to learn that more women in India die of cervical cancer than in any other country.  Almost 97,000 new cases of cervical cancer surface every year. The situation continues to be grave. To stem the tide, in our own humble way, we have taken up a project aimed at the prevention of cervical cancer through the administration of the HR-HPV vaccine. In the interiors of Maharashtra – in remote places such as Dindrud, Latur, Beed in Ahmednagar and Vairag, Solapur, 1800 girls of whom 800 have already been given the vaccine and a 1000 more will take the vaccine this year, will feel assured that the dreaded disease will not strike them, a 95 per cent surety. In the area of cancer care and prevention, we work with the District Health Department in partnership with NGOs.

Furthermore, annually we conduct 15 cancer check-up camps in Pune through our Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital’s mobile cancer detection van.  Over 2000 people avail of this service annually and in every camp at least three patients investigated show signs of the malady. Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital is reckoned as a world class cancer hospital. Of course at our 18 other hospitals, cancer detection is an ongoing activity. Still what we do is a drop in the ocean”, remarks Mrs. Rajashree Birla, Chairperson, Aditya Birla Centre for Community Initiative and Rural Development. But as they say every drop counts.