The Indian illegally occupied Jammu and Kashmir’s leading tertiary care hospital, Soura Institute of Medical Sciences has registered over 4,000 cases of cancer this year so far, while over 44,000 have been registered at the institute since 2014.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the Soura hospital has registered 4,095 new cases of cancer as of September this year. From 2014 till September 2023, 44,112 cases of cancer were reported to the institute.
As per details, 3,940 cases were registered in 2014, followed by 4,417 in 2015, 4,320 in 2016, 4,352 in 2017, 4,816 in 2018, 4,337 in 2019, 3,814 in 2020, 4,727 in 2021, 5,294 in 2022, and 4,095 this year till September.
The cancer cases have shown a steep rise in Kashmir, officials said, adding that in men, lung cancer is the most prominent one, while women are fast falling prey to breast cancer. “Smoking is one of the primary reasons for cancer among males, besides family history, obesity, and age, among other factors, responsible for the cancer cases,” they said.
Meanwhile, the cases of dreaded HIV/AIDS are increasing with each passing year in the occupied territory, as a total of 6,305 patients have tested positive in the region from 1998 until October 2023.
A top health official told media men that 1,452 HIV-positive patients have died since 1998 until October 2023, while 3,583 patients are living on Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART). He pointed out that 521 patients have left follow-up. He said the number of patients infected has shown a rising trend.
The medical officials said IIOJK is at a greater risk of HIV/AIDS due to high concentration and huge presence of Indian forces’ personnel, non-Kashmiri actors, non-Kashmiri employees and non-Kashmiri labourers, considered a vulnerable bridge population for HIV transmission. They added that most patients testing positive for HIV/AIDS in IIOJK have contracted the disease from outside.—KMS
