The number of cancer cases in India jumped by 4.5% in 2016 to 14.51 lakh, according to the Indian Council of Medical Research or ICMR.
The number implies that 1 in 930 people in India have cancer as of 2016.
In 2015, the total number of cancer patients in India was estimated at 13.88 lakh (1.39 mln) by the same agency (see chart).
It also reveals that the number of people with cancer is growing at a faster pace compared to the overall population growth rate, which is estimated at around 1.15%.
This suggests that as the average age of the Indian population increases, the proportion of people with cancer also increases.
Other factors such as rising urbanization, changing lifestyles, food habits, increasing industrialization and pollution also contribute to the increase in cancer.
Moreover, as India’s health facilities improve, people live longer and longer as they do not die from curable diseases.
Indians also have a habin of chewing tobacco, which leads to cancer of the mouth.
According to the fourth round of ‘National Family Health Survey’ conducted by the government, about 8.8% of the women and 13.5% of the men between the ages of 15 and 49 also had high blood pressure.