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Bollywood cancer cases shine light on national crisis

Social media is abuzz with reports of two famous Bollywood actors announcing their diagnosis of cancer. The stories have elicited emotional outburst all across the country and again brought to light India’s tough battle with cancer.  First Irrfan Khan — star of over fifty Bollywood films and numerous international box office hits —  announced in …

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India’s health check: It’s bad news

In August 2016, a tribal man in Odisha walked ten kilometres from the hospital where his wife died. He carried her body with him – in the presence, no less, of his twelve-year-old daughter. He was forced to do so because the state hospital could not provide an ambulance.  The incident served as a graphic …

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Heart diseases kill, but heart doctors are in short supply

Heart diseases are India’s biggest killers. In 2016, 28.1 percent of all deaths were due to cardiovascular ailments. Yet, despite losing 1.7 million lives to heart disease every year, India does not have enough cardiologists to manage the burden. “India needs 88,000 cardiologists. It has just 4,000.” India needs 88,000 cardiologists. It has just 4,000. By …

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Price capping devices and drugs: Hospitals express concern

The Delhi government has made price capping proposals in the health sector. The measure has won the support of 85 percent of Delhiites as per a recent poll. However, it has also provoked criticism from hospitals — in particular private institutions — due to the potential for massive reductions in their profit margins. The move …

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India defiant in US dispute over price capping

India has responded to US criticism of the price capping of medical devices with defiance. It is refusing to abstain from continued price regulation. India received a specific mention in the US Special 301 reports from the National Trade Estimate Report on Foreign Trade Barriers (NTE) regarding the price capping. The report identifies India’s National …

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A type 1 diabetes epidemic among India’s children?

Around 97,000 children in India suffer from type 1 diabetes. In Delhi alone around 32 children per every 1,000 are affected by the disease. Indians suffer a genetic predisposition to diabetes which partially accounts for the elevated numbers of diabetics in India compared to other nations. A number of genes have been uncovered which could …

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An environmental health crisis: One in ten asthma patients gasp for breath in India

India holds between fifteen and twenty million asthma sufferers. Recent evidence suggests one in ten asthma patients reside in India. This can be seen as indicative of a wider crisis surrounding environmental health in India.  Asthma is the most common chronic condition among children worldwide. The cost of managing the condition is thought to exceed tuberculosis …

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India not taking advantage of its own vaccines?

India is a leading producer of vaccines. It has enjoyed numerous vaccination campaign successes in the past. Despite this, around 60,000 Indian children under five die of vaccine-preventable diseases every year. India has demonstrated its capacity for successful vaccination campaigns in the past. On March 27, 2014, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared India polio-free. …

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DNA profiling bill: Not just for dead bodies?

The upcoming parliament session is expected to contain a bill allowing for the DNA profiling of unidentified bodies and missing people. However, with consistent complaints of health insurance companies discriminating against those with genetic conditions, would many be reluctant about any kind of DNA profiling system? The intention of the bill thus far only extends …

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Nearly 200 women a day die from cervical cancer

Approximately 172 women die every day in India due to cervical cancer. According to the Indian Council for Scientific Research (CSIR), more than 63,000 women in India died of the disease in 2015. This is despite cervical cancer being 80 percent preventable,  often treatable and having a high survival rate if caught in its early …

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