(CANCER INSTITUTE, Adyar )

Date of the facilitation: 12.7.18

Cancer Institute, in Adyar is a research based institution which delivers free cancer for
thousands of poor patients across the country over the past 50 years. In the year 1954,
Dr.Muthulakshmi Reddy, was the first women in India graduated with medicine and as a
social reformer, who entirely dedicated her life to help and serve the cancer patients.

The institute is a comprehensive cancer centre comprising of a hospital of 535 beds, a

research division, a college of oncological sciences and a division of preventive oncology and
provides state of art treatment to one and all. It has both a National and International stature.
Based on the data base annually, over 15,672 new patients and 140,935 follow up cases are
seen in the institute. Today, Cancer Institute is the only free standing non-profit institution
that provides excellent cancer care regardless of socio, economic conditions.

The institute provides multi-dimensional services through diagnosis, care, research,

preventions, education.

 Provides state of care for all patients which 60% are been treated for free.
 They screen rural population for early intervention of cancer symptoms.
 Provide training for rural public health workers in personal communication.
 Promote tobacco cessation programs

The Institute’s internationally recognized research laboratories focus on the cause, prevention
and treatment of cancers common in India.

The mission of the cancer institute is to provide as scientific treatment and promote health
education amongst all sections of people. The aim of the cancer institute is to provide service
to all irrespective of their social or economic background. It was established in the faith that
selfless service would generate its own strength and funds would always be found. The
Institute will not be confined to the four walls of a multi storey building but will strive to
reach out to every nook & corner of the state. The Cancer Institute (WIA) shall aspire to be a
symbol of man's eternal quest to conquer disease and an inspiration that reaches out to
humanity.
PROCESS

The field visit to the Cancer Institute in Adyar, the institution has multi-dimensional facilities
and treatments to care for the cancer patients in and across India. The inpatient services has a
total of 530 bed allotted including general and special wards. In which the wards are divided
with two campuses of Cancer Institute (WIA), The visiting hours for the patients are
managed from 4pm to 6pm daily.

They have various services regarding their diagnosis such as radiology, microbiology,
molecular diagnostic and their therapeutic service like anaesthesia, nuclear medicine, surgical
oncology , radiation oncology and so on.

The exclusive department is the psycho-oncology which is for the patients who are under
been diagnosed with cancer suffer from severe stress and depression they are been taken care
by mental health professionals to provide standard and quality psycho-social care to the
cancer patients and integrate psycho-social services as part of the cancer care at the Institute.
To fill the wide gap between current scientific knowledge and actual clinical care of patients.

There are volunteering activities in the institute for the welfare of the patients, like managing
a fund raising booth ,ushering during an event , provide food/snack distribution and sales
during an event , update and maintain the institute website and so on.

REFLECTION

My field visit to cancer institute was different and new experience. I found myself being
uncomfortable and disturbed throughout the visit as I was given a lot of unknown information
of the cancer disease in-depth.

In cancer institute they started psycho-oncology because the suicide rates were noticeably
increasing as in when patients were diagnosed with cancer. I realised that the patient’s
experiences high level of stress and the anxiety which need to be acknowledged immediately
to hinder further severity of the patient’s mental health concerns.

In India, almost 70% of the cancer patients seek for medical support only in their final stage,
by which I understand that people fear of being diagnosed with cancer and also they aren’t
enough awareness among the general population about Cancer. I realise that it can be the
major reason behind people delaying their appointments to health professionals even after
noticing evitable symptoms.

There various factors contributing to cancer, one of the larger contributions is smoking
tobacco. However, cancer caused due to smoking is intentional occurring and that they can be
prevented yet many people consume it. I understand that providing people adequate
awareness about the consequences of smoking and also psycho-education about the illness
would positively prevent people from smoking tobacco.

I learnt about the 3 hand smoking levels, the first hand smoking is basically a person smoking
cigarette and second hand smoking is called as passive smoking were the people standing or
sitting next to the smoker. And then third hand smoking, it usually is transferred from the
clothes or the walls which contains carcinogens. By which I had insights that the disease by
tobacco source may occur by any of these three modes of smoking and can have higher
chances of cancer.

I learnt about the different types of cancer (i.e) cervical cancer, head and neck cancer, etc are
been diagnosed with systematic procedure and the various exclusive treatments given to the
patients. I understand that through providing psycho- social interventions, the quality of life
of the patients is been effectively increased.

I realised apart from the various medical treatments given to the patients, its highly essential
for patients to have psychological help as well, for them function effectively in an overall. It
helps them to cope up with their stress and also provide them will power to handle their
stressors caused by the disease.

REFERENCES

 "Cancer Institute (WIA) Chennai, Adyar". Cancerinstitutewia.in. Retrieved 2017-09-

26.
 http://cancerinstitutewia.in/CIWIA/about%20the%20institute.html
 http://cifwia-wp.cifwia.org/second-opinion/#