More than a hospital

ABOUT 10 to 12 million people the world over suffer from cancer with more than half from developing countries. In India, at any given time, there are 2.5 million cancer patients in the country. If you think this is bad news, there’s worse to come. By 2020, the number of patients globally will shoot up to 20 million, and 72 per cent of them will be from the third world.

Is India geared to meet the challenge of this cancerous future? “The answer is no,” says Dr Mohandas Mallath, academic dean at the Tata Memorial Centre (TMC) in Mumbai. Cancer rates in India are about 100 in a population of 100,000. As India ages, this hydra-headed disease will affect many more people because cancer tends to proliferate among those in the 60- to 75-age band.

TMC is a comprehensive centre for the prevention and treatment of cancer, and for research. It is a landmark on the global health map and particularly important to this part of the world. Nearly 25,000 patients visit the clinics each year, not only from all over India but from neighbouring countries as well. About 60 per cent of patients seeking primary care are treated free of charge.

The institution is a classic example of how well private philanthropy and public support can work together. More than a hospital, the centre stands on the frontline of India’s fight against a disease that takes no prisoners.

Corporate commitment

The family behind Indian multinational conglomerate, the Tata House, established this global centre of excellence in Mumbai in 1941, at time when there were only a handful of such institutions in the world.

After Lady Meherbai Tata died of leukaemia in 1932, her husband, Dorabji Tata — the chairman of Tata Sons and the son of the founder Jamsetji Tata — wanted to bring to India a facility similar to the ones abroad where his wife was treated. After Dorabji’s death, his successor,Nike Air max Dominate