Confronting India’s Cancer Crisis Between Medical Advances and Missing Access

With India facing a rapid rise in cancer cases and mortality, a focused approach to treatment and interventions is critical. ETHealth World’s India Oncology Leadership Summit will bring together leading clinicians, policymakers, and innovators to shape a forward-looking roadmap, driving breakthroughs while making cancer care accessible, affordable, and aligned with national healthcare priorities.

New Delhi: Despite decades of policy initiatives, targeted schemes, and
private sector support, India’s cancer burden has surged unabated now second only to China and the United States rising relentlessly in both absolute numbers and relative scale, outpacing trends in other fast-growing economies.

Recent data from 43 national cancer registries outline an incidence approaching 1.5 million cases and over 0.8 million deaths ranking second globally alongside an increasing concentration in regions with limited resources.

Meanwhile, beyond statistics, the disease’s toll lands a devastating blow on patients’ lives. Families confront prolonged suffering, economic fragility, and systemic inequities.

While modern modalities have made significant strides in turning tumours at various stages increasingly treatable, developing the required ecosystem-anchored in robust infrastructure, skilled clinical expertise, and rigorous protocols, secured within an equitable financing framework -remains a long-standing challenge in India for translating global scientific progress into tangible improvements in patient survival and quality of life.

Confronting this concern, at the inaugural edition of the India Oncology Leadership Summit, ETHealthWorld is set to bring together the country’s leading clinicians, policymakers, and top innovators to chart a future roadmap for tackling these challenges and making new medical breakthroughs more accessible to patients across India, aligned with the nation’s healthcare needs.

Building on the keynote, the agenda will explore “The Right Approach in Cancer Care: From Breakthroughs to Impact.”

The expert panel will feature Dr. Sameer Bakhshi, Professor & Head, Dept. of Medical Oncology, AIIMS Delhi; Dr. Vinod Raina, Chairman-Oncology, Fortis Memorial Research Institute; Dr. Sewanti Limaye, Director – Medical & Precision Oncology and Oncology Research, Reliance Foundation Hospital; Dr. Jyoti Bajpai, Lead – Medical and Precision Oncology, Apollo Cancer Centers; and will be moderated by Vikas Dandekar, Editor – Health & Pharma, The Economic Times.

The inaugural panel discussion will be followed by a Special Guest Address by Dr. Manju Sengar, Prof. & Head Medical oncology, focusing on “Doing the Right Thing in Cancer Care: Reducing Disparities.”

Following the special address, Aurélien Breton, Managing Director, Servier India, will share his insights on “Rare Cancers in India: Why Precision Medicine Matters More Than Ever.”

After the partner presentation, Vandana Gupta, Founder, V Care Foundation, will bring a survivor’s perspective to the conversation in a session titled “Cancer Care Through the Survivor’s Lens.”

The agenda will progress to a detailed examination of “The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA): Unlocking the Genetic Code of Cancer.”

The panelists for the session will include Dr. Shantanu Chowdhury, Professor, CSIR-Institute of Genomics and Integrative Biology (IGIB); Dr. Sanjeeva Srivastava, Professor, IIT Bombay, Founder – Proteomica International Pvt. Ltd.; Dr. Chintamani, Professor and Chairperson, Surgical Oncology, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital; Dr. Muzammil Shaikh, Principal Director – Medical Oncology, Nanavati Max Institute of Cancer Care; and will be moderated by Prathiba Raju, Senior Assistant Editor, ETHealthworld, The Economic Times Group.

Following the panel discussion, Dr. Ramesh Hariharan, Director & CEO, Strand Life Sciences, will make a partner presentation on “Non-Invasive Multi-Cancer Early Detection.”

The industry presentation will be followed by a discussion on “Cancer Centers: How Effective Are They in Addressing India’s Growing Cancer Burden?”

The experts for the session will include Dr. Kumar Prabhash, Professor & HOD, Medical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital; Dr. Dinesh Pendharkar, Director, Sarvodaya Cancer Institute; Dr. Sharat Damodar, Chairman of Oncology Services & Clinical Director, Mazumdar Shaw Medical Centre, Narayana Health City; Dr. Ashish Bakshi, Consultant Medical Oncologist, Hemato-oncologist and BMT Physician, Jupiter Hospital & Bethany Hospital; Dr. Vashishth Maniar, Director, Co-founder & Senior Medical Oncologist, M | O | C Cancer Care and Research Centre; and will be moderated by Prathiba Raju, Senior Assistant Editor, ETHealthworld, The Economic Times Group.

The panel discussion will be followed by an industry presentation titled “The Need for Super-Speciality Pharmacies: Lessons from Global Oncology Care” by Devashish Singh, Co-founder & CEO, Mr Med (Eazymed Technologies Pvt. Ltd.).

Following the industry presentation, Dr. Hemant Malhotra, President, Indian Society of Oncology, Professor & Head, Dept. of Medical Oncology, MGM Medical College Hospital, will deliver a special address.

The special address will be followed by a panel discussion exploring “From Innovation to Access: Reimagining Cancer Care.”

The panelists for the session include Dr. Daksha Shah, Executive Health Officer, Public Health Department, BMC; Dr. Sabita Jiwnani, Professor, Thoracic Surgery, Department of Surgical Oncology, Tata Memorial Hospital; Dr. Ratna Devi, Director, Patient Academy for Innovation and Research, Dakshayani and Amaravati Health and Education; Gaurav Tripathi, Executive Vice President, Aditya Birla Health Insurance; and will be moderated by Vikas Dandekar, Editor – Health & Pharma, The Economic Times.

Building on the cost concerns, the summit will further explore “Cracking the Cancer Code with Cutting-Edge Diagnostics,” a vital pillar in improving patient outcomes while reducing treatment costs.

The session will feature Dr. Pratik Chandrani, Assistant Professor, ACTREC, Tata Memorial Centre; Dr. Tanveer Abdul Majeed, Consultant Surgical Oncologist (Gastrointestinal, Thoracic & Hepatopancreaticobiliary Services), Kokilaben Hospital and Lilavati Hospital; Dr. Mandeep Singh Malhotra, Director – Surgical Oncology & Molecular Oncology, CK Birla Hospital; Dr. Dharmishta Basu, Medical Oncologist, Jupiter Hospital; Dr. Kunal Jobanputra, Medical Oncologist & Hemato-oncologist, Consultant – Saifee, Jaslok, and SL Raheja Hospitals; and will be moderated by Dr. Ajay Phadke, Director of Strategic Business Development, Agilus Diagnostics.

The inaugural summit will conclude with closing remarks by Vikas Dandekar, Editor – Health & Pharma, The Economic Times Group.