Shillong Nov 16: The High Court of Meghalaya has flayed the state government over the lack of facilities in the state to treat cancer.
Hearing a PIL on the matter, the Division Bench said though a token unit has now been set up at the Civil Hospital in Shillong with a limited number of beds and the same is scheduled to be inaugurated in the next month, there does not appear to be any adequate equipment to deal with the deadly malaise.
With the incidence of oral cancer in the State is about the highest in the country, particularly in the western areas where betel-nut chewing is common and rampant, the court said it is doubtful that a screening mechanism put in place by the state will be a remedy. At any rate, even if this screening mechanism leads to early detection of cancer, the state has no amenities to offer to the citizen after detection of cancer, the court said.
