Free cancer screening tests from Dec: Collector

TIRUPATI: District Collector K Venkataramana Reddy said that free cancer screening tests will be held from December with an aim to make the district cancer free.

He said that the State government has decided to conduct the screening camps first in Tirupati and Visakhapatnam districts.

Accordingly, with the help of TTD, SVIMS and donors, the screening tests will be held using pink buses. Along with SVIMS Director Dr R V Kumar, the Collector visited the pink bus that reached the Institute and went through various facilities in the bus to conduct tests in the bus.

The Collector said that the tests will be held in every village and already the staff at various levels was trained for the purpose. The objective of screening tests is to detect the first stage cancers in patients and to save them from further complications.

SVIMS Director Dr R V Kumar said that the Institute is one among the few institutions which have advanced cancer screening facilities. It has one pink bus already while one more has come now with the help of TTD and donors.

Through VPR foundation, Vemireddy Prabhakar Reddy and Prasanthi Reddy donated the Rs 2.75 cr pink bus to SVIMS. Women above 40 years will be screened for cancer through these buses at the special camps to be held at village level. He said that soon one more bus will also come up which will help in conducting tests at more places. Sri Balaji Institute of Oncology special officer Dr Jayachandra Reddy, DM & HO Dr U Sreehari and other doctors were present.