Profile and burden of cancers in Assam: an insight from Assam Cancer Care Foundation hospitals

Dipjyoti Das; Subrata Chanda; Jai Prakash Prasad

doi:10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20262263

Authors

Dipjyoti Das Assam Cancer Care Foundation, Guwahati, Assam, India
Subrata Chanda Assam Cancer Care Foundation, Guwahati, Assam, India
Jai Prakash Prasad Assam Cancer Care Foundation, Guwahati, Assam, India

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.18203/2394-6040.ijcmph20262263

Keywords:

Assam cancer care foundation, Cancer burden, Site of cancer, Addiction history

Abstract

Background: The North-Eastern region of India, particularly Assam, reports among the highest cancer incidence and mortality rates in the country. To address this growing burden, the Assam Cancer Care Foundation (ACCF) was established through a partnership between Tata trusts and the government of Assam, implementing a Distributed cancer care model across the state. This study examines the cancer burden, patterns, and trends among patients attending ACCF hospitals.

Methods: Patient data, including demographic characteristics, clinical profile, and diagnosis, were extracted from the Medical records department (MRD) module of the Hospital management information system (HMIS). Data from May 2022 to September 2024 were cleaned, compiled in Microsoft excel, and analyzed to identify key trends and cancer patterns.

Results: Most patients were above 50 years of age. More than 95% reported a history of addiction, highlighting the widespread prevalence of tobacco and alcohol use. Oral cavity, breast, esophageal, and lower Gastrointestinal (GI) cancers were the most common cancer sites among patients attending ACCF hospitals. Among males, oral cavity, esophageal, upper GI, and lower GI cancers predominated, whereas breast, gallbladder, and lower GI cancers were the leading malignancies among females.

Conclusions: Oral cavity, breast, esophageal, and lower GI cancers constitute the major cancer burden in Assam. The predominance of cancers associated with tobacco and alcohol use, coupled with the high prevalence of addiction and older age among patients, underscores the need for strengthened prevention, early detection, and control strategies.

References

ICMR-National Centre for Disease Informatics and Research. Profile of Cancer and Related Health Indicators in the North East Region of India. Bengaluru: ICMR-NCDIR, 2021. Available at: https://ncdirindia.org/All_Reports/NorthEast2021/Default.aspx?. Accessed on 07 March 2026.

Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India. Census of India 2011: Primary Census Abstract—Population Size and Decadal Change. New Delhi: Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India, 2013. Available at: https://censusindia.gov.in/nada/index.php/catalog/43333/study-description?. Accessed on 07 March 2026.

International Agency for Research on Cancer. Cancer Today: Estimated number of deaths in 2020, all cancers, both sexes, all ages. Lyon (France): World Health Organization, 2020. Available at: https://gco.iarc.who.int/today/en/dataviz/pie?group_cancers=1&group_populations=0&key=total&mode=population&multiple_cancers=1&options_indicator=%5Bobject+Object%5D_%5Bobject+Object%5D_%5Bobject+Object%5D_%5Bobject+Object%5D&reset=1&sexes=1&types=2. Accessed on 07 April 2026.

Mathur P, Sathishkumar K, Chaturvedi M, Das P, Sudarshan KL, Santhappan S, et al. ICMR-NCDIR-NCRP Investigator Group. Cancer statistics, 2020: Report from National Cancer Registry Programme, India. JCO Glob Oncol. 2020;6:1063-75.

Bajpai V. The challenges confronting public hospitals in India, their origins, and possible solutions. Adv Public Health. 2014;2014:898502.

Dhillon PK, Mathur P, Nandakumar A, Fitzmaurice C, Kumar GA, Mehrotra R, et al. The burden of cancers and their variations across the states of India: The Global Burden of Disease Study 1990–2016. Lancet Oncol. 2018;19(10):1289-306.

Phukan RK, Ali MS, Chetia CK, Mahanta J. Betel nut and tobacco chewing: potential risk factors of cancer of oesophagus in Assam, India. Br J Cancer. 2001;85(5):661-7.

Chelleng PK, Narain K, Das HK, Chetia M, Mahanta J. Risk factors for cancer nasopharynx: A case-control study from Nagaland, India. Natl Med J India. 2000;13(1):6-8.

Anil Singh S, Ghosh S. Association of Epstein Barr virus and lifestyle on nasopharyngeal cancer risk among the ethnic population of northeast India. Sci Technol J. 2014;2:95-102.

Sharma TD. Study on dietary and environmental risk factors for nasopharyngeal cancer in Manipur. Int J Health Sci Res. 2011;1:8-14.

Chakraborty P, Sakthivel S, Kumar B, Kumar S, Mishra M, Verma VK, et al. Spatial distribution of persistent organic pollutants in the surface water of River Brahmaputra and River Ganga in India. Rev Environ Health. 2014;29:45-8.

Haloi N, Sarma HP. Heavy metal contaminations in the groundwater of Brahmaputra flood plain:An assessment of water quality in Barpeta District, Assam (India). Environ Monit Assess. 2012;184:6229-37.

Hussain MF, Ahmad I, Konhauser KO. Major ion and heavy metal chemistry of Pachin river (Itanagar) - levels and sources. J Environ Sci Eng. 2006;48:27-34.

Dixit R, Srivastava P, Basu S, Srivastava P, Mishra PK, Shukla VK. Association of mustard oil as cooking media with carcinoma of the gallbladder J Gastrointest Cancer. 2013;44:177-81.

Phukan RK, Narain K, Zomawia E, Hazarika NC, Mahanta J. Dietary habits and stomach cancer in Mizoram. India J Gastroenterol. 2006;41:418-24.

Bagal S, Budukh A, Thakur JS, Dora T, Qayyumi B, Khanna D. Head and neck cancer burden in India: an analysis from population-based registries. Indian J Cancer. 2023;60(1):45-52.

Noronha V, Dikshit R, Raut N, Joshi A, Pramesh CS, George K, et al. Epidemiology of lung cancer in India: focus on the differences between non-smokers and smokers. Lung India. 2016;33(2):143-9.

Kumar A, Kumar A, Singh R, Singh S, Kapoor R, Kumar M. Gallbladder cancer: progress and prospects in the Indian subcontinent. J Surg Oncol. 2024;129(5):652-61.

Mehrotra R, Yadav K, Bhatla N. Breast cancer in India: present scenario and the way forward. World J Clin Oncol. 2022;13(3):209-18.

Bray F, Laversanne M, Weiderpass E, Soerjomataram I. Global cancer statistics 2022: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin. 2024;74(3):229-63.

Cinar D, Tas D. Cancer in the elderly. North Clin Istanb. 2015;2(1):73-80.

Carpenter DO, Bushkin-Bedient S. Exposure to chemicals and radiation during childhood and risk for cancer later in life. J Adolesc Health. 2013;52(5):S21-9.

International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) and ICF. National Family Health Survey (NFHS-5), 2019–21: State fact sheet, Assam. Mumbai: IIPS, 2021. Available at: http://rchiips.org/nfhs/factsheet_NFHS-5.shtml. Accessed on 07 April 2026.

Ohlrogge AH, Frost L, Schnabel RB. Harmful Impact of Tobacco Smoking and Alcohol Consumption on the Atrial Myocardium. Cells. 2022;11(16):2576.

Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai; Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India. Global Adult Tobacco Survey (GATS 2), India 2016–17: National report. Mumbai: International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), 2017. Available at: https://ntcp.mohfw.gov.in/assets/document/surveys-reports-publications/Global-Adult-Tobacco-Survey-Second-Round-India-2016-2017.pdf. Accessed on 07 April 2026.

Asmin PK, Nusrath F, Divakar DD. Occurrence and Distribution of Cancers with Emphasis Upon Oral Cancers in Registered Oncology Institutes of South India - A Retrospective Study. Indian J Community Med. 2024;49(1):120-30.