BHOPAL: The All-India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Bhopal, has spent around $20 million on the treatment of cancer patients in the past five years. In this duration, it has registered 407 cancer patients, of whom 75 have died.

A patient’s friend, peeved over the treatment meted out to him, had sought the information from the AIIMS management on the amount of money spent on the treatment of cancer patients from 2015 till November 2020. He also asked about the number of cancer patients registered at the institute, besides the number of deaths.

In its reply to the applicant, AIIMS gave the amount spent on cancer patients in dollars, euros and rupees. According to the reply, AIIMS spent more than $19 million on procuring a hi-tech machine. In regard to another expense, AIIMS said that it had spent $1 million 11,000 euros to buy another machine.

Giving other details of the treatment of cancer patients, AIIMS said it had spent 15 crore 13 lakhs in Indian currency rupees. This entire sum was spent on the radiation oncology department, according to the reply by AIIMS.

The AIIMS management said that it had 407 cancer patients under treatment from 2015 till January 2020.

The state capital, Bhopal, has seen no reprieve in services for cancer patients despite having three big hospitals, including AIIMS, Hamidia Hospital and the Bhopal Memorial Hospital and Research Centre (BMHRC). All these three hospitals have been receiving funds in huge amounts, but patients hardly get any relief here and the affluent class generally prefers other cities for treatment.

‘No good medical experts, machines’

"My friend was diagnosed to have breast cancer and was admitted to AIIMS, Bhopal. But, in the absence of good medical experts and machines, her condition deteriorated and she is now undergoing treatment at AIIMS, Delhi," says Vivek Pandey, who had sought information under the RTI Act.

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