The 3rd Edition of the Apollo Cancer Conclave is inaugurated by Smt. K. Kavita, MP!
Hyderabad, 3rd February, 2017: The 3rd Edition of Apollo Cancer Conclave (ACC) & 7th Edition of the Cancer CI 2017 - an international conference aimed at improving cancer management in India and abroad, was inaugurated by the Chief Guest Smt. K. Kavita, MP, Nizamabad, on Friday at HICC. Dr. Prathap C. Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group, presided over the function, Guests of Honour Dr. Akila N Viswanathan, Chairperson, Scientific Committee; Ms. Sangita Reddy, Joint Managing Director, Apollo Hospitals Group; Cine Actress Ms. Manisha Koirala; Dr. P. Vijay Anand Reddy, Director, Apollo Cancer Hospital & Chairman, Org. Committee, CANCER CI – 2017; Dr. SVSS Prasad, Vice Chairman, Org. Committee,CANCER CI – 2017 & Dr. TPS Bhandari, Organising Secretary, Org. Committee, CANCER CI – 2017, were present on the occasion.
Speaking on the occasion Ms Kavitha said, Manisha has again proved that pretty women can be tough, she is an inspiration for many others. The more information I was trying to dig out about cancer I only realised cancer is so huge a problem in our country, at one stage I started shivering realising the magnitude of the problem. There is just 1 oncologist for 2000 people in our county and it's not fair to lose one women out of every two women with cancer. It's not the negligence of the state or central governments, it's just that we are not aware. Sangita and me need to present the data in parliament to raise the awareness and initiate a joint action involving the entire ecosystem to bring about change in this desperate situation. The policy recommendation from this conference can be taken up with the government. Often the patient dies due to an advanced stage of the cancer, but because of the amount of money spent on treatment the whole of the family dies too. It's time to bring in some ethical practices by the medical community, how far is it right to treat a patient in end stage with strong and expensive doses of drugs, the medical community should retrospect. I am ready to do my bit, the information on cancer is an eye opener for me I from today will work on cancer.
Ms Manisha said, Is cancer conquerable, is my favourite topic. When I was diagnosed with cancer, for me the whole world shook. I know exactly what a patient goes through, something inside you wants to kill you, that's something which is unfathomable. Many of us ask why me and then we are forced to deal with it with a strong mentality, intelligence, patience and compassion. I had to remodel my life, explored all the information on dealing with cancer. Now I can tell emphatically that cancer is not death sentence, give hope to people who lost hope. I was lucky to have got treated at the best hospital by best doctors, a good family to support me and huge support and love from my fans. Because of all that I am standing in front of you today.
Ms Sangita said, the battle against cancer is huge, every day 1300 patients die of cancer, out of every two women with breast cancer one dies. Also one out of every eight men and one out of every nine women will get cancer in our country. 17 lakh new cases of cancer are diagnosed every year. The problem is large but often it is preventable, the single largest player in the battle against cancer is the individual himself, he can lead a life to prevent from being a victim of cancer. The cancer in men due to tobacco usage is preventable in 90% cases. If detected early cancer can be cured in majority of the cases, therefore as a society we need to promote early detection and screening of cancer. Our society was earlier plagued by communicable diseases, but it's been reversed, now we have more non-communicable diseases, of which cancer is the largest NCD and if left unchecked it can cost us $7 trillion by 2025. Can we Indians find a way to raise the levels of awareness, that will enable us to fight the disease. Precision and personalised treatment is the way forward in cancer treatment, she added.
This forum of International fame is being attended by 2500 delegates and 400 faculty including who's who of Global Cancer Care, eminent researchers and medical practitioners from India, and across the world. The four day Conclave provides a platform to deliberate on cancer management through panel discussions, interactive sessions and debates, all organised with a view to encourage a multi-modality approach towards raising the bar in cancer care.
According to Dr Vijay Anand Reddy the highlights of the Conclave are,
Emphasis on the emerging and most promising treatment option - Immunotherapy, which in the years to come is likely to revolutionise cancer treatment. The initial results from Immunotherapy are gratifying and are better than the existing modalities of treatment. Unlike other modalities of treatment like Chemotherapy, Radiation, Surgery, which have a role to treat some cancers and not all, immunotherapy can be all pervasive and can treat all cancers. This is evolving and can be the future of cancer treatment. It is already used to assess the mutation of the drug administered for lung cancer, which was not possible earlier as lung tissue aspiration is difficult, it is also key in breast and colon cancers now.
The world's most renowned cancer care practitioners including Dr. Avraham, N. Eisbruch, Dr. Akila N. Viswanathan, Dr. Ranjana H. Advani, Dr. Patrick Kupelian, Dr. Eric Van Cutsem, Dr. Felicia Tan, Dr. Marwan G. Fakih, Dr. Meena Savur Moran, will all be here, during the Conclave.
A unique Panel Discussion on 'Cancer is Conquerable' with Bollywood Diva and Cancer Survivor Ms Manisha Koirala, being part of, on World Cancer Day on Saturday 4th February. This event in partnership with FICCI-FLO will have experts from community and senior Oncologists as part of the panel.
Robotic Surgery is the in thing for cancer treatment, it is the biggest innovation after laparoscopy in surgery. A precise and accurate surgery is possible through robot, because of its 10 times magnification, he said.
