UNDERSTANDING THE PROBLEM OF CANCER IN KASHMIR: A SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF PREVALENCE PATTERNS
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29121/shodhkosh.v5.i1.2024.2013Keywords:
Cancer, Gastrointestinal Tract, Kashmir Valley, Malignancy, PrevalenceAbstract [English]
Cancer is a major global health issue, surpassing cardiovascular disease as the second major cause of death worldwide. Rising cancer incidence due to a variety of factors highlights the need to better understand the prevalence patterns at the local level in order to improve the availability and accessibility of healthcare facilities. This empirical study is an attempt in this regard. It explores and describes the prevailing trends and patterns of cancer in the Kashmir valley in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Based on the descriptive analysis of a total of 2365 registered cases of various cancers in one of the major tertiary care health centres, this paper finds that the major forms of cancer affecting people in the research area are related to the gastro-intestinal tract (42.5%), followed by the thoracic (25.5%) systems of the human body. Among males, lung cancer (6.4%) is the commonest cancer, while among females, the leading cancer site relates to the breast (6.3%) across all ages. Further, the interviews with various health care specialists also revealed the same pattern of cancer prevalence in Kashmir. The overall findings of this study suggest that no large population-based epidemiological studies have examined cancer patterns in the Kashmir valley. The site-specific studies will elucidate epidemiological variations and recommend cancer prevention strategies.
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