Jammu recorded 9,427 cancer cases from 2020 to 2024, mostly in advanced stages.
Lung cancer is the most common, followed by head and neck, breast, and hepatobiliary cancers.
Men account for a higher share of cases, with 5,351 patients compared to 4,076 women.
Over a five-year period, the State Cancer Institute at the Government Medical College Jammu recorded 9,427 cancer cases, with the majority of patients seeking treatment only after the disease had reached advanced stages, PTI reported.
According to the latest Hospital-Based Cancer Registry data from 2020 to 2024, 5,351 patients were men and 4,076 were women, resulting in a male-to-female ratio of 1.31:1, indicating a higher incidence of cancer among men in the region.
The data identified lung cancer as the most frequently diagnosed malignancy, with 1,338 cases, followed by head and neck cancers (1,005), breast (704), hepatobiliary (681), genito-urinary (654), haematological cancers (653), esophageal (519), oral cancers (519), and cervical cancer (494). Other significant cancers included intestinal (456), cancers of unknown primary (410), ovarian (354), lymphoma (305), stomach (279), brain (263), prostate (233), bone and soft-tissue cancers (210), along with 186 other women’s cancers, 111 skin cancers, and 53 cases classified as other types, PTI reported.
Age-wise, the highest number of cases was reported in the 60–80 year group, with 4,234 patients, followed by 3,669 cases in the 40–60 year bracket. Patients aged 20–40 accounted for 964 cases, those above 80 numbered 456, and children and adolescents aged 0–20 comprised 102 cases, PTI reported.
The staging data revealed a concerning pattern: 4,029 patients were diagnosed at Stage IV and 2,744 at Stage III, showing that most patients sought hospital care only after the disease had advanced. Stage II cases totalled 1,958, while Stage I cases were 696, PTI added.
(With inputs from PTI)
