5,727 people died of cancer in Maharashtra in 2019, says state health minister

Replying to a question raised in the state Legislative Council, Maharashtra health minister Rajesh Tope said the number of experts treating cancer patients was not sufficient as compared to the population of the state.

As many as 5,727 people in Maharashtra died due to cancer last year, state Health Minister Rajesh Tope said on Tuesday.

Maharashtra’s health minister Rajesh Tope said doctors and staff in 16 district civil hospitals have completed their training for cancer treatment at the Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai. (HT File Photo)

Replying to a question raised in the state Legislative Council by BJP MLC Niranjan Davkhare, the minister said the number of experts treating cancer patients was not sufficient as compared to the population of the state.

“The National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research has stated that 11,306 people were suffering from cancer and 5,727 of them died in the calendar year 2019,” Tope said in a written reply.

He said out of the 36 districts in the state, the civil hospitals in 11 districts have already started offering chemotherapy for the treatment of cancer.

In other districts, the state government’s Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Jan Aarogya scheme is covering the treatment in private hospitals, he said.

The minister further said the number of experts treating cancer was not sufficient compared to the population of the state.

Doctors and staff in 16 district civil hospitals have completed their training for cancer treatment at the Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai, Tope said.