New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday sought responses from the Centre and all State governments on a Public Interest Litigation seeking directions to declare cancer a notifiable disease across India. The move aims to ensure uniform reporting, early detection, and improved patient care nationwide.
Bench Hears PIL on Rising Cancer Burden
A Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi took note of submissions by advocate Gaurav Kumar Bansal, appearing for petitioner Dr Anurag Srivastava, former head of the Department of Surgical Disciplines at AIIMS New Delhi.
Demand for Mandatory Cancer Reporting
The plea urged the court to issue a writ of mandamus directing the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to notify cancer as a notifiable disease. It argued that mandatory reporting is essential for accurate surveillance and effective policy-making to tackle the growing cancer crisis in India.
Constitutional Duty of the State Highlighted
According to the petition, the continued non-notification of cancer violates Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, as it denies equal treatment to citizens and undermines their fundamental right to health and life with dignity amid the disease’s alarming rise.
Fragmented Data and Policy Gaps
The plea stated that the absence of compulsory reporting has resulted in fragmented data, weak surveillance, and policy paralysis. While health is a state subject, both the Centre and States have the authority to notify diseases, leading to inconsistencies as some states have notified cancer while many others have not.
Delayed Diagnosis and Poor Outcomes
The petition pointed out that non-uniform notification has caused major disparities in cancer detection and care. In many states, patients are diagnosed at advanced stages, making curative treatment difficult, costly, or impossible, thereby worsening survival outcomes.
Limitations of Cancer Registry and Misinformation
The PIL highlighted serious shortcomings in the National Cancer Registry Programme run by ICMR, which currently covers only about ten percent of the population, with rural coverage as low as one percent. It also flagged the spread of unscientific cancer treatments, including misleading claims about cow urine, which delay proper medical care.
Call for Digital Registry and Screening Programme
The petition sought directions to establish a centralised, real-time digital cancer registry integrated with hospital data, insurance schemes, and mortality records, similar to the CoWIN platform. It also urged the implementation of nationwide cancer screening and a clear policy to promote only evidence-based cancer treatments.
