A cruel disease that touches all of our lives, we all know somebody who will die from cancer and many of us have already witnessed a friend, or a loved one, perish in its grip.
An estimated 9.6 million people die each year from cancer, which is more than HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis combined, and this number is projected to rise to 13 million by 2030. Cancer Research UK tells us that 1 in 2 people in the UK born after 1960 will be diagnosed with some form of cancer during their lifetime.
The 4th February sees World Cancer Day so spare a thought on that day for the survivors of the Bhopal Disaster, along with the families exposed to the contaminated water in Bhopal, among whom the rates of some cancers are believed to be as much as ten times higher than should be expected.
It is a shocking indictment of the toxicity of many commonly used chemicals of which the Bhopalis have been more heavily exposed than many of us. But, ultimately none of us are escaping this toxic load. We all live in Bhopal.
2011: Cancer cases in Bhopal have tripled: ICMR study
2016: Sambhavna Study Says Gas Hit Ten Times More Prone to Cancer
2018: ‘The world is against them’: new era of cancer lawsuits threaten
2018: Status of Health and Healthcare in Gas Exposed and Unexposed Populations
