Treatments In Head & Neck Cancers Have Tremendously Transformed: Dr Anil Kumar Anand

The treatment for cancers such as the head and neck have transformed tremendously over the years, says Dr Anil Kumar Anand, Senior Director and HOD, Radiation Oncology, Fortis Memorial Research, Gurugram, adding that patients often worry while undergoing treatment for these cancers. Cancers which are collectively known as head and neck cancers usually begin in the mouth, throat or the voice box.

Speaking on the sidelines of BW Healthcare World’s Oncology Summit 2023 he said that the patients worry about aspects such as the disfigurement after surgery and problems in eating or swallowing among other concerns. 

On advancements in treatments Dr Anand says that there are now technological improvements such as, “For radiation,  we have technologies called the IMRT (Intensity-modulated radiation therapy) and IGRT (Image-guided radiation therapy), which can kill the tumor with very little side effects and similarly surgical techniques have also improved,” Dr Anand says. Adding that the present treatments leave patients with a social life where one can talk and eat well without any problem in speech or swallowing.

Speaking on challenges of fighting cancer, Dr Anand says that the general caveat in cancers is the late detection of all cancers types in India, he enumerates that India has failed in the cancer screening aspect, “We have failed in screening and have also partially failed in early detection. I still feel we are seeing very advanced cases, we are seeing only 15 to 20 per cent of early stage oral cancer whereas we see advanced lung cancer at a rate of 80-90 per cent,” Dr Anand added.

Therefore, due to detection in stage three and four, our survival rates are almost half of the survival rates in North America and Europe, he says. Apart from the issue of late detection Dr Anand believes that the lack of availability of expertise, specialised surgeons, radiation oncologists and medical oncology in tier two and tier three cities is also a major tussle. 

Advising on prevention, he says that if patients symptoms like mouth ulcers, pain in tongue or jaw, cough and voice hoarseness prolongs a certain period of two to three weeks, one should immediately go to an ENT specialist or a cancer department in a hospital.