Hyderabad : 

Cricketer Sachin Tendulkar has launched a research centre on gastrointestinal cancer. Started by the Asian Institute of Gastroenterology , the centre would study the prevalence and incidence of gastrointestinal (GI) cancers.

Addressing a gathering at the launch here on Tuesday, Dr D. Nageshwar Reddy, Chairman of AIG, said the Gastrointestinal and Liver Foundation for Research and Treatment of Cancers would collect and disseminate latest information on prevention and treatment of digestive cancers.

Besides educating lawmakers and the media on the burden of digestive cancers, the centre proposes to educate and train physicians on prevention and treatment of digestive cancers. Stating that the incidence of gastrointestinal cancers was extremely high in India, he said about 40 per cent of these cancers could be prevented if screened early. G. V. Rao, a senior gastroenterology consultant, said the foundation would start a screening programme to observe the risk factors and other parameters. Aerated drinks, food laced with preservatives and stored in fridges for long, could cause GI cancers.

With highest incidence and mortality rates among all cancers, GI cancers far outnumber lung and breast cancers in the developing countries. In 2008, 22 lakh new GI cancers were registered, with 18 lakh patients succumbing to such cancers.

Dr Prateek Sharma, Professor of Medicine (Gastroenterology and Hepatology) at the University of Kansas in the US, said deaths due to these GI cancers could cross the 1.2-crore mark by 2030.

The data on cancers in India, however, is limited. But quoting a survey done by the National Cancer Registry Programme (Bangalore), Nageshwar Reddy said India might have some of the highest cancer rates in the world.

source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Home> Features / The Hindu Bureau / kurmanath.kanchi@thehindu.co.in / Hyderabad, March 05th, 2013