Panjim: The Goa Health Department, alongside AstraZeneca and Qure.ai, is launching multiple initiatives to improve cancer treatment in the area. These efforts consist of supplying complimentary chemotherapy medications, administering Pertuzumab-Trastuzumab therapies for HER2+ breast cancer patients at Goa Medical College (GMC), launching an AI-based lung cancer detection initiative in 17 healthcare facilities, and deploying mobile screening units in underprivileged regions. The collaboration seeks to help around lakhs of patients annually.
Health Minister Vishwajit Rane stressed the importance of early cancer detection and ensuring treatment is accessible to everyone. A notable MoU between AstraZeneca Pharma and the National Health Mission of Goa seeks to enhance lung cancer identification through AI screening technologies. AstraZeneca's 'Lung Ambition Alliance' prioritizes the early identification of lung cancer, a significant cause of death.
Health minister Goa, Vishwajit Rane said, “Lung diseases’ burden can no longer be ignored, and it needs comprehensive strategies to fight the same. This MoU with AstraZeneca India will not only help us find at-risk lung cancer patients but also will screen multiple other lung diseases with 1 simple scan. We are expecting great success out of this collaboration and are sure that this step will strengthen our approach to diagnose disease early so that we can guide our patients early and save more lives”.
Dr. Sanjeev Panchal from AstraZeneca India highlights the project's potential for using AI-driven diagnostic tools in district hospitals and selected primary healthcare centres, providing cost-free low-dose CT scans to high-risk populations (aged 24-75) for one year, thus promoting early diagnosis and better patient outcomes.
Dr. Sanjeev Panchal, Managing Director and Country President, AstraZeneca India said, " At AstraZeneca, we are focused on transforming outcomes for patients, increasing access to healthcare and making healthcare systems more resilient. This partnership with the government of Goa is an opportunity to integrate AI-based chest X-ray and low dose CT technologies that are instrumental in early cancer diagnosis thereby improving patient outcomes."
The Goa government is committed to ensuring access to innovative healthcare for its citizens by establishing a procurement policy for proprietary healthcare products in collaboration with AstraZeneca India. This partnership aims to enhance the availability of medical advancements, particularly for lung diseases.
Health Minister Vishwajit Rane stressed the need for comprehensive strategies and highlighted a Memorandum of Understanding with AstraZeneca, which focuses on early identification of lung cancer risk and improving the screening process for various lung diseases.
The initiative is anticipated to aid in early diagnosis and intervention, ultimately saving lives. The collaboration with AstraZeneca’s 'Lung Ambition Alliance' seeks to address the approximately 1,400 to 1,500 new cancer cases identified yearly in Goa, contributing to broader national health standards amid a high cancer incidence nationwide.
This reflects the government’s dedication to affordable healthcare and positions Goa as a model for transformative healthcare partnerships in India, promoting hope and progress in the medical field.
