Health Minister Deepak Sawant said here on Thursday that the State was planning to set up cancer treatment hubs in Aurangabad, Nagpur and Aundh in Pune.
He also said he would consider a request made by Tata Memorial Hospital (TMH) to give vacant buildings to accommodate the poor patients who lived on the pavements outside the premier cancer facility.
Speaking at TMH on World Cancer Day, Mr Sawant said the State would be moving an anti-spitting bill in the next assembly session. He said the treatment hubs planned in other parts of Maharashtra would be modelled on the TMH.
The government would also be focussing on Gadchiroli, where tobacco use among women was considerably high, Mr Sawant said. He was told by TMH officials that a cancer registry had already been set up at Gadchiroli that was recording cancer incidence in the area. RA Badwe, director, Tata Memorial Hospital, said people should follow basic hygiene measures and reduce obesity to prevent cancer. He said 70 per cent of cancer cases were preventable.
