No radiotherapy facility for 3,000 cancer patients at South Kashmir’s hospital
Srinagar : Around 3,000 cancer patients registered at the lone major hospital in South Kashmir are without radiotherapy facility, forcing them to travel to Srinagar for life-saving treatment.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the department at GMC Islamabad currently provides only chemotherapy and palliative care from a cramped, makeshift space inside the hospital.
A dedicated two-storey oncology block is under construction, but it cannot offer radiotherapy without specialized equipment. “GMC Islamabad has already submitted a proposal worth Rs 40 crore to the government for the required equipment, but the department can become fully functional only when the necessary equipment is available,” said Dr Shahid Bashir Wani, head of the Radiation Oncology Department.
The proposal includes a linear accelerator for radiation treatment, a CT simulator for radiotherapy planning, a PET scanner and other equipment required to expand cancer care. The equipment cost is separate from the building expenditure.
For now, patients from Islamabad, Kulgam, Pulwama and Shopian, as well as parts of the Chenab Valley and Pir Panjal region, must travel to SMHS or Kashmir Institute of Medical Sciences, Soura, in Srinagar for radiotherapy.
“Radiotherapy often requires treatment five days a week for four to five weeks, making repeated journeys costly and physically exhausting,” a medic said, adding that the burden is difficult for many patients to sustain.
Medical experts estimate that 60 to 65 percent of cancer patients require radiotherapy at some stage.
