Guwahati/ Silchar, The 11-day 10-city cancer awareness ”Run
and Ride” Rally by Tata Trusts and
Cachar Cancer Hospital in collaboration with the Voice of Tobacco Victims
(VoTV), National Cancer Grid, Electrobion Sip, Silchar Thumpers was flagged off in Silchar today. 18 bikers and a team of 25
will cover the 7 states of North East Region. At each stop, prior to starting
the ride, there will be a run/walkathon of 5 kms. At the launch in Silcher
today, around 600 people participated in the run. A number of organizations participated-
NSS, GC College, NIT, C-DAC, Lions Club, District Sports Authority, Inner Wheel
Club, Department of Health, Airports Authority of India, Assam Police and
others.
The Indian Army, Assam Rifles, Indian Air Force,
CRPF, BSF and other Defence personnel participated in large numbers in the
fight against cancer.
The Ride and Run Rally’s stops are Shillong, Guwahati,
Tezpur, Itanagar, Dibrugarh, Kohima, Imphal, Aizwal, Agartala and it will
conclude in Silchar on 21st March. The riders will cover a total
distance of over 2100 kms.
The riders will interact with people and
organizations on the way - at small towns, villages and big cities all across
the North East Indian states spreading awareness cancer, risk factors, sign and
symptoms, its preventive measures, research aspects and treatment modalities.
Dr Ravi Kannan, Director, Cachar Cancer Hospital
& Research Centre and VoTV patron, said, “this Rally aims to spread
awareness on cancer and the importance of early detection. People often think
cancer is not curable but all cancer deaths do not have to be in agony. He
added that if tobacco was not there, 50% of all cancers and 90% of oral cancers
can be prevented.”
India has 14.5 lakh new cases of cancer each
year which is expected to rise to 17.3 lakh cases by 2020. This is a huge
cancer burden for India. Furthermore, 70% of the cases are reported at the late
stage of disease which results in a high mortality rate of 50%. The most common
cancer types are oral, breast and cervical cancer, which are far more lethal in
the Northeast Region compared to the rest of India. The delayed diagnosis is
due to a lack of awareness of cancer symptoms, poor access to affordable care
and other psychological factors like fear and fatalism.
Sanjay Seth, Trustee & Head Tobacco Control, Sambandh
Health Foundation said, “Large participation by various organizations and
groups shows how this issue is impacting our whole society. Only a patient and
family realizes the actual suffering when cancer attacks. There is a tobacco
epidemic in the Northeast and this rally will raise awareness about the issues.”
As per the Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS) done in in
2009-10 (GATS-1)and 2016-17 (GATS-2), tobacco consumption has gone up in
Manipur, Assam and Tripura. In Manipur, the tobacco consumption has
increased to 55.1% in GATS-2 from 54.1% in GATS-1; in Assam, tobacco
consumption was 39.3% in GATS-1 which increased to 48.2% and in Tripura, it has
escalated to 64.5% in GATS-2 from 55.9% in GATS-1.
Amongst
the partners, Dr Ravikant Singh from Doctors For You, said, “these partnerships
will bring all of us together in real sense. Awareness is an important aspect
especially when it comes to early detection of cancer. Lots of lives and pain
can be saved.”
Organising partners are National Service Scheme (North East Region),
Rotary District 3240, Sambandh Health Foundation, Doctors For You, NEIGRIHMS
(Shillong), Shillong Commerce College, Manbha Foundation, Guwahati Medical
College and Hospital, Baptist Christian Hospital (Tezpur), Arunachal State
Hospital, Assam Medical College, Naga Hospital, Regional Institute of Medical
Sciences (Imphal), Mizoram Cancer Institute, Tripura Medical College. Other
partners include Silchar Thumpers, Rough It Out, Rentrip, Tata Motors, Yummy
Foods.
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