Karnataka government grants Rs 10 crore to cancer institute

HUBBALLI: The Karnataka Cancer Therapy and Research Institute (KCTRI), a 45-year-old hospital serving cancer patients in North Karnataka and the Goa region, has got a much-needed government grant of Rs 10 crore to upgrade technology.
The hospital was the only cancer facility to open when people in the region were forced to travel to Mumbai or Chennai for treatment.
Keeping this in mind, Dr. R B Patil wanted to make cancer treatment accessible and affordable and set up this life-saver facility in 1977 for poor and rural patients.
However, the hospital was facing a financial crunch while trying to upgrade technology and needed renovation.
The state government has now sanctioned Rs 10 crore as a special fund for the hospital.
KCTRI chairman Dr. B R Patil said: “We are planning to procure some radiotherapy equipment and renovation of the OPD block. The requirement of a mobile detection van, procuring machines for mammography and ultrasound, and setting up a diagnostic centre are in the pipeline. We will use the funds to get these possible facilities on priority,” he said.
Mahendra Singhi, one of the directors, said a team involving the board management, like Vijay Sankeshwar, Dr. BR Patil and Anita Patil, had met CM Basavaraj Bommai in February. “Now, the government has sanctioned Rs 10 crore. We are grateful for Bommai and the North Karnataka region will remember him for this,” he said.
“The hospital treats nearly 1,800 cases a year. As many as 150 cases a month are being treated under government schemes. Cases are mainly from north Karnataka like Hubballi-Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri, Vijayapura, Kalaburagi, Belagavi and a few cases from Davangere and Shivamoggga.”