MUMBAI: The number of patients registering for cancers of the digestive tract-classified as gastrointestinal (GI) cancers-at the city’s premier cancer hub, Tata Memorial Hospital, increased by 200% between 2010 and 2022.
This may be symptomatic of an age of fast food and XXL sizes, where GI cancers account for 26% of the global cancer incidence and 35% of all cancer-related deaths. “There is a general increase in GI cases due to the rise in urbanisation and lifestyle changes,” said Dr Shailesh Shrikhande, TMH’s deputy director and head of cancer surgery.
While TMH registrations for GI cancers rose 200%, Dr Shrikhande said there was a 300% rise in patient admissions since 2010. The TMH data showed while 1,355 patients were admitted for treatment in 2010, the number increased to 5,402 in 2022.
A review by the Indian Council of Medical Research’s National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research, Bengaluru, in 2022 found a “high magnitude” of GI cancers, mainly oesophagus, stomach, gallbladder, rectum and pancreas across different regions of India.
Looking at data from population- and hospital-based cancer registries across India from 1982 to 2016, it found gallbladder cancer rising in Delhi and Mumbai. “Pancreatic cancer had a rising trend among women in Mumbai. There was an increasing trend for pancreatic cancer among men in Chennai and Mumbai,” said the review in the indexed medical journal, ‘Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention’.
However, Dr Avinash Supe, former dean of KEM Hospital and a GI surgeon, said although there is a rise in GI cancers, it isn’t alarming in India. “The rise is in sync with the rise in population. Certain centres enjoy a good reputation and may see more patients coming in for treatment, but more footfalls in one hospital doesn’t mean there is an increase in the community,” he said.
Dr Supe said the most notable aspect of GI cancers in recent times has been the drastic improvement in treatment modalities. “Until two decades back, 80% of the GI cancers would be detected at a stage when they were inoperable, but we have come a long way since then,” he said.
He said patients now come earlier for detection. “Moreover, we have better chemotherapy regimen and we use robotic surgery for more precision. These factors have reduced the mortality rate,” he said.
Consider the TMH data itself. While 677 of the GI patients admitted in 2010 underwent surgery, the number increased to 2,083 in 2022. “There has been a 250% rise in surgeries for GI cancers since 2010, and mortality dropped from 2.2% (in 2010) to 1.4% (in 2022),” said Dr Shrikhande.
Globally, the incidence of GI cancers is set to increase by 58% by 2040, according to the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC).
