NEW DELHI: A parliamentary panel has recommended expanding palliative care across India to reach more patients as the ageing population grows and chronic diseases rise, noting that the National Programme for Palliative Care (NPPC) is already in place.
The Committee stressed the need to track the effectiveness of interventions and called for robust outcome indicators to measure the NPPC’s impact on patients’ quality of life.
“Collectively, these measures will help establish a cancer care ecosystem that is data-driven, patient-centric, and outcome-oriented,” said the 163rd Report of the Committee on Petitions, Rajya Sabha, on a petition seeking affordable and accessible cancer treatment.
The Committee, chaired by Rajya Sabha MP Narain Dass Gupta, said: “The need for palliative care is increasing at a rapid pace due to the world’s ageing population and increases in chronic diseases. Accordingly, the government is implementing the NPPC, which is a part of the National Health Mission (NHM).”
Notably, the NPPC supports palliative services in 456 districts across 27 states and union territories.
Emphasising that post-treatment and palliative care are essential in cancer management, the Committee, which presented its report on 20 August, said there is a need for a nationwide palliative care policy integrated into primary, secondary and tertiary hospitals, government schemes and health insurance. It also urged stronger occupational rehabilitation services to help survivors reintegrate into society.
Dr Parth Sharma, public health and palliative care researcher with the Association for Socially Applicable Research (ASAR), said robust indicators to monitor progress were a crucial recommendation.
“Currently, palliative care coverage is assessed using morphine consumption per cancer death, which is a poor indicator to study access to palliative care,” he said.
While the Committee noted a shortage of oncologists, Sharma said more trained staff are also needed to deliver palliative care at all levels of the system. He added that home-based services remain only on paper under the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases (NPNCD).
“Inclusion of palliative care in cancer treatment protocols, initiating occupational rehabilitation for survivors and promoting CSR investment in palliative care are strong recommendations that can improve the lives of people living with cancer in India,” Sharma said.
He noted that insurance coverage for curative cancer care is improving but palliative care remains excluded, especially under private schemes.
The Rajya Sabha Committee also urged that cancer be declared a notifiable disease to ensure systematic reporting, generate real-time data, strengthen surveillance and support evidence-based policymaking.
It recommended a high-risk cess or heavy taxes on tobacco products, which account for nearly one-third of cancer cases, to fund cancer research and care.
Highlighting cervical cancer as the most common cancer among Indian women, the Committee called for nationwide rollout of the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine under the Universal Immunisation Programme for girls aged 9–14.
The report said India has only 2,000 oncologists for more than 10 million cancer patients. Quoting the Indian Council of Medical Research, it projected cancer deaths would rise 20% to 880,000 in the next four years.
Despite advances in medical science and technology, cancer care remains inaccessible and unaffordable for many, it said.
“Alarmingly, over 70% of cancer cases in India are diagnosed at advanced stages (Stage III or IV), when treatment becomes not only less effective but also significantly more expensive,” the Committee noted.