Adyar Cancer Institute sees surge in patients in need of care, seeks funds

Ram.Sundaram @timesgroup.com

Chennai:13.04.2020

After several private cancer care centres across Tamil Nadu closed due to the Covid-19 lockdown, a number of patients have turned to the Cancer Institute, Adyar, over the past week. The ace institute is having a tough time keeping up with the demand and has sought help from the public to meet the cost of purchasing anti-cancer drugs, paying around 1,000 employees and maintenance work.

Chairman of the 66-year-old institute, V Shantha said, “The pandemic is taken care of by the government as it should be. With the government also facing similar problems, only the public has to help us since we, as a charitable institution, do a lot of free treatment”.

Drugs alone would cost up to ₹2 crore every month. The institute usually receives ₹40-₹50 lakh as donations every quarter but that might go down as the public may now choose to contribute to the Prime Minister or the chief minister’s relief funds.

While most hospitals have delayed cancer treatment and have asked patients to return after April, the Cancer Institute has seen an increase in outstation patients seeking chemotherapy as the treatment was unavailable closer to their homes.

“We are treating our patients with great difficulty. We are not overloaded but we have to spend from our pockets if patients increase by the month-end,” Dr Shantha said.

At present, around 25% beds are occupied and chemotherapy is done if there is undue morbidity and patients are sick. The institute is also facing two other challenges. First, transportation of staff and patients in the absence of public transport. So food and accommodation are provided to a section of staff to ensure that patients are taken care of. The other issue is the fear of infection among medical staff.

“Since families of some employees are not allowing them to commute, routine operations are affected in most hospitals. So doctors are postponing surgeries and managing with chemos,” said oncologist Dr S G Balamurugan, state secretary of Association of Surgeons of India.

NEED HELP: Usual donations received by the institute could go down as public might choose to contribute for Covid-19 relief