India’s biggest public sector cancer hospital to open in Lucknow

LUCKNOW: Pursuing aggressively strengthening of the medical infrastructure in the state both for research and treatment purposes, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will launch a super-specialty 1250-bed cancer institute —- India’s biggest in public sector — in the city next week.

Talking to TOI, additional chief secretary, medical education, Rajneesh Dube, said that he had discussed prospects of the institute with the CM who is likely to give his consent for dedicating it to the public.“Not only in terms of having highest number of beds – 750 in the first phase and 500 in the second – it will be the largest cancer institute in the public sector with all super specialists working under one roof on a DMG format which will also be its uniqueness,” Dube added.

Under the DMG format, specialists of all disciplines sit in a room along with the patient who sits just opposite them as is witnessed in high profile interviews. Experts listen to medical issues of the patient and finalise the treatment line. The system saves the patient from visiting different departments and he gets medical advice without any problem. “So far, the DMG pattern is limited to top ranking corporate hospitals or has been adopted by some department of AIIMS and PGI. But in the cancer institute the treatment will be done on the DMG mode,” he said.
To strengthen the medical infrastructure in the most populated state of the country having population of over 23 crore, the CM has been pursuing the speedy construction and expansion of medical colleges in 45 districts out of 75, Dube said, adding that “in the last three months 45 laboratories have been set up in the state to conduct Covid-19 test. It would also prove useful for next generations.”
Dube said that the CM has offered his full support for this state of the art super-speciality cancer institute which would not only provide excellent treatment on affordable prices to patients, but also ease pressure from SGPGI, RML hospital and KGMU. The cancer institute would offer the same treatment which is currently available in Delhi and Mumbai, he said.
Meanwhile, director of the institute Dr Shaleen Kumar said that “our motto is to offer affordable, pragmatic, cost effective and compassionate cancer care to the needy.”
Although the foundation of the institute was led during the fag end of Samajwadi Party government in January 2017, the CM along with additional chief secretary, medical education, pursued it relentlessly to make it fully functional.