The Regional Cancer Centre (RCC) at

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

is a cancer care hospital and

research centre A research institute, research centre, research center or research organization, is an establishment founded for doing research. Research institutes may specialize in basic research or may be oriented to applied research. Although the term often im ...

. RCC was established in 1981 by the Government of

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South ...

and the Government of India. It is located in the

Thiruvananthapuram Medical College The Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram (also known as Thiruvananthapuram Medical College or Trivandrum Medical College) is in Thiruvananthapuram (the capital of Kerala), India. Founded in 1951, it was inaugurated by Prime Minister J ...

campus in

, the capital city of the state of

. It was established as an expansion of the

Radiation Therapy Radiation therapy or radiotherapy, often abbreviated RT, RTx, or XRT, is a therapy using ionizing radiation, generally provided as part of cancer treatment to control or kill malignant cells and normally delivered by a linear accelerator. Radia ...

/ Radiotherapy department of Medical College Trivandrum. It is a tertiary care center for the managements of all types of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

s. The clinics are mainly on

Haematology Hematology ( always spelled haematology in British English) is the branch of medicine concerned with the study of the cause, prognosis, treatment, and prevention of diseases related to blood. It involves treating diseases that affect the produc ...

, Lymphoreticular, soft tissue, bone, head and neck, breast, CNS, gynaecological, urinary, chest, gastro, paediatric oncology and thyroid.

Background

The RCC was established in 1981 as one among six such centres (currently 26) in India. During the formation period the state government transferred a few departments of the Medical College, Thiruvananathapuram, which were primarily concerned with cancer care to the

Regional Cancer Centre Regional Cancer Centres (RCCs) are cancer care hospitals and research institutes operating in India under the joint control and funding of the Government of India and the respective state governments. The name 'regional' because each of these insti ...

. The RCC is an autonomous scientific institution sponsored jointly by the

government of Kerala Government of Kerala is the subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision ...

and the

government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

. It has been designated as a Science and Technology Centre in the health sector by the state government. The first Community Oncology division in India was established in RCC, Thiruvananthapuram, in 1985. The center has evolved policies and priorities to provide oncology facilities to the less privileged in the community like children and less affluent members by giving free chemotherapy and advanced diagnostic facilities like CT scan, isotope scanning etc. Nearly 60% patients receive free treatment and another 29 percent in the middle income group receive treatment at subsidized rates. Free chemotherapy is given to all children irrespective of family income. Adults with curable cancers also receive free treatment. During the last five years, drugs worth Rs.80 lakhs have been supplied free of cost to the low income group. Annually more than 17,000 new cancer cases, more than 50,000 follow-up visits of old cases and more than 80,000 non-cancer patients for investigations report at the centre. During the last five years, there was a 50 percent increase in the registration of both cancer and non-cancer cases. The government of Kerala has declared RCC a Science and Technology Centre of Excellence in cancer research and treatment, and as a State research organization of the Ministry of Science & Technology of the government of India. Every year nearly 16,000 new patients visit the clinics from

South India South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territo ...

and neighboring countries. Nearly 60% of these cancer patients receive

primary care Primary care is the day-to-day healthcare given by a health care provider. Typically this provider acts as the first contact and principal point of continuing care for patients within a healthcare system, and coordinates other specialist care t ...

at the hospital of which over 70% are treated almost free of charge. Over 500 patients attend the OPD daily for medical advice, care or for follow-up treatment.

Hospital Based Cancer Registry

The Hospital Based

Cancer Registry A cancer registry is a systematic collection of data about cancer and tumor diseases. The data are collected by Cancer Registrars. Cancer Registrars capture a complete summary of patient history, diagnosis, treatment, and status for every cancer ...

(HBCR), Trivandrum, was established at the Regional Cancer Centre in 1982 as part of the National Cancer Registry Programme of the

Indian Council of Medical Research The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), the apex body in India for the formulation, coordination and promotion of biomedical research, is one of the oldest and largest medical research bodies in the world. The ICMR is funded by the Gove ...

. The HBCR has been collecting information on cancer patients reporting to the RCC, Trivandrum Medical College Hospital, SAT hospital for Women and Children and Dental College, Trivandrum from 1 January 1982.

Objectives

The RCC was created to meet the following objectives: * Evolve a cancer control programme for South-Western India. * Offer facilities for diagnosis and assessment of cancer by

histopathological Histopathology (compound of three Greek words: ''histos'' "tissue", πάθος ''pathos'' "suffering", and -λογία ''-logia'' "study of") refers to the microscopic examination of tissue in order to study the manifestations of disease. Spec ...

cytological Cell biology (also cellular biology or cytology) is a branch of biology that studies the structure, function, and behavior of cells. All living organisms are made of cells. A cell is the basic unit of life that is responsible for the living and ...

, clinicopathological,

biochemical Biochemistry or biological chemistry is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology an ...

, advanced imageology,

endoscope An endoscope is an inspection instrument composed of image sensor, optical lens, light source and mechanical device, which is used to look deep into the body by way of openings such as the mouth or anus. A typical endoscope applies several modern t ...

nuclear medicine Nuclear medicine or nucleology is a medical specialty involving the application of radioactive substances in the diagnosis and treatment of disease. Nuclear imaging, in a sense, is "radiology done inside out" because it records radiation emitting ...

and

molecular diagnostics Molecular diagnostics is a collection of techniques used to analyze biological markers in the genome and proteome, and how their cells express their genes as proteins, applying molecular biology to medical testing. In medicine the technique is ...

. * Provide facilities for treatment and management of cancer by radiotherapy, surgery,

chemotherapy Chemotherapy (often abbreviated to chemo and sometimes CTX or CTx) is a type of cancer treatment that uses one or more anti-cancer drugs (chemotherapeutic agents or alkylating agents) as part of a standardized chemotherapy regimen. Chemotherap ...

, radiation medicine and

immunotherapy Immunotherapy or biological therapy is the treatment of disease by activating or suppressing the immune system. Immunotherapies designed to elicit or amplify an immune response are classified as ''activation immunotherapies,'' while immunotherap ...

. * Establish facilities for fundamental and

clinical research Clinical research is a branch of healthcare science that determines the safety and effectiveness ( efficacy) of medications, devices, diagnostic products and treatment regimens intended for human use. These may be used for prevention, treatm ...

relating to cancer. * Providing a

palliative care Palliative care (derived from the Latin root , or 'to cloak') is an interdisciplinary medical caregiving approach aimed at optimizing quality of life and mitigating suffering among people with serious, complex, and often terminal illnesses. Wit ...

service for advanced cancer patients. * Establish

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-lev ...

and

post graduate Postgraduate or graduate education refers to academic or professional degrees, certificates, diplomas, or other qualifications pursued by post-secondary students who have earned an undergraduate (bachelor's) degree. The organization and struc ...

training in oncology in collaboration with other centres of academic and clinical skill. * Generate manpower for the region in the field of oncology, both medical as well as para-medical.

Information Systems Divisions

Information Systems Division has been entrusted with the task of developing, implementing and maintaining the Hospital Information System and associated computer technology. The main responsibilities of the department are to develop and implement hospital policy for information and associated computer technology. It undertakes extensive system development and research and has responsibilities for organizational and management change to support systems implementation and utilization. It supports and maintains operational systems and provides training to hospital staff in the use of information technology. The main focus area is on the integration of clinical as well as financial and administrative applications

Cytopathology Division

The Cytopathology Division provides investigations in addition to conventional histopathology and cytology.

Imageology Division

The Imageology and Nuclear Medicine Divisions use diagnostic imaging technology to provide diagnosis.

Pain management

Pain management Pain management is an aspect of medicine and health care involving relief of pain (pain relief, analgesia, pain control) in various dimensions, from acute and simple to chronic and challenging. Most physicians and other health professionals pr ...

and palliative care for advanced and incurable stages of cancer are undertaken by a dedicated unit.

Progress

* An area of progress has been radiological imaging techniques using ultrasound, CT Scanners, and more dynamic real time nuclear medicine scanning. * Pathology has progressed from basic histopathology to molecular pathology with emphasis on predictive assays for identifying the high-risk prognostic factors. * Work has been carried out in areas of rehabilitation,

physiotherapy Physical therapy (PT), also known as physiotherapy, is one of the allied health professions. It is provided by physical therapists who promote, maintain, or restore health through physical examination, diagnosis, management, prognosis, patient ...

occupational therapy Occupational therapy (OT) is a global healthcare profession. It involves the use of assessment and intervention to develop, recover, or maintain the meaningful activities, or ''occupations'', of individuals, groups, or communities. The field of ...

speech therapy Speech is a human vocal communication using language. Each language uses phonetic combinations of vowel and consonant sounds that form the sound of its words (that is, all English words sound different from all French words, even if they are th ...

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...

and

medical social work Medical social work is a sub-discipline of social work. Medical social workers typically work in a hospital, outpatient clinic, community health agency, skilled nursing facility, long-term care facility or hospice. They work with patients and their ...

. RCC is a training centre for cancer education and research by national and international organizations such as

WHO Who or WHO may refer to: * Who (pronoun), an interrogative or relative pronoun * Who?, one of the Five Ws in journalism * World Health Organization Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Who, a creature in the Dr. Seuss book '' Horton He ...

, IAEA and UICC. RCC is a post-graduate teaching center and is affiliated to

Kerala University of Health Science Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Can ...

. It runs super specialty courses like MCh(Surgical Oncology), DM Medical Oncology, DM Pediatric Oncology, MCh Head & Neck Surgery, and MCh Gynecological Oncology. It also started MD Radiotherapy, MD Anaesthesiology, and MD Pathology. Every year more than 400 students undergo training at the Centre in medical and paramedical disciplines.

References

External links

RCC Trivandrum official site
{{authority control Hospital buildings completed in 1981 Government buildings completed in 1981 Medical research institutes in India Medical Council of India Hospitals in Thiruvananthapuram Regional Cancer Centres in India Research institutes in Thiruvananthapuram 1981 establishments in Kerala