The state health department and the Mumbai based Tata Trusts on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding to provide advanced treatment to cancer patients in the region. Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the five medical college hospitals of Assam would each get a 100 bed oncology wing with advanced equipment like linear accelerators, cobalt machines, PET/ CT scan machines, and MRI within 2018.
“Through this MoU, we have formed a cancer grid with Tata Trusts at the top, the cancer hospital at the Gauhati Medical College Hospital and Dr B. Borooah Cancer Institute in the middle and the district hospitals at the bottom. The finest machines will be made available to the district hospitals,” Sarma said. He also added that Tata Trusts had also agreed to help build a separate oncology wing in upcoming medical colleges in Lakhimpur, Dhubri, and Diphu.
The partnership aims to provide quality cancer acre in the state, formulate a cancer control programme, facilitate early detection of the disease, and develop and upgrade comprehensive treatment infrastructure. Employees to run the oncology units will be recruited by the state government but trained by Tata Trusts.