Walk to battle cancer - Event today to spread awareness about disease

School students take part in a cancer awareness rally in 2012.

Come Monday and a large number of residents will put on their walking shoes to tread miles for a cause — cancer awareness.

In a district, Kamrup (metro), which, according to Indian Council of Medical Research, Kamrup’s Population Based Cancer Registry (2006-08), has the second highest incidence in the country of all cancers among men and the third highest among women, the event — Walk for Life — organised by the Cancer Society of Northeast, an NGO, assumes even more relevance.

School and college students, doctors, lawyers, artistes, different NGOs and people from different fields of work will be participating in the event that will begin in the morning at the Arya Vidyapeeth College here. The participants will walk to Gauhati Medical College and Hospital carrying banners highlighting various issues related to cancer. Even cancer patients will be present on the occasion to share experiences related to their fight against the disease.

Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is also likely to attend.

“We are organising the rally on World Cancer Day to spread awareness among the common people on cancer. Even today, people have many misconceptions regarding the disease. Though it becomes life threatening in the advanced stage, it is also curable if detected early and if a patient has access to proper medical care. Several advancements are taking place in the field of cancer care that cannot only cure different forms of cancer, but also increase the longevity of a patient,” Cancer Society of Northeast publicity secretary Pinaki Dhar said.

“We have invited students from all schools, colleges and other educational institutions to participate in the rally. This will definitely help spread awareness on the causes of cancer among the youngsters, who, in turn, can educate people they come into contact with. This is particularly important, as the Northeast happens to be one of the highest incidence zones of cancers in the country. In fact, Mizoram has the highest incidence of cancer in the country. The incidence of different forms of cancer is also high in Kamrup (metro) district,” said another NGO member.

According to Union ministry of health and family welfare’s latest Global Adult Tobacco Survey-India, the Northeast has the highest tobacco consumption figures in the country, with 44.1 per cent people aged 15 and above consuming tobacco in one form or the other. Every second man and every third woman in the region is addicted to tobacco.

This high incidence of tobacco consumption has resulted in the region accounting for the highest incidence of tobacco-related illnesses in the country.