cancer – The Metrognome

Conducting free seminars in 14 Mumbai schools, the DS Research Centre wants to educate children about substance abuse and cancer effects.

by The Editors | editor@themetrognome.in

Cancer is a dreaded disease and is often caused by many wrong lifestyle choices. In the current times, it has been found that children studying in classes 9 and 10 show an increased inclination for addictives like drugs, cigarettes and alcohol. They may or may not be aware of the consequences, especially that these addictions can lead to many diseases, especially cancer.

The DS Research Centre, Mumbai has launched a ‘Spread It to the Roots’ campaign to educate around 4,000 children from 14 schools across Mumbai about cancer.

Spread It to the Roots majorly speaks about healthy habits and healthy lifestyle. It explains about the challenges that students face in maintaining healthy habits, including the negligence of healthy food and regular eating due to academic pressure. It has been found that students abuse alcohol, tobacco and drugs when they see celebrities indulging in these habits.

“Students are the future of the human race. Increase in cancer incidence due to false habits picked up by students is really sad. Having an awareness programme for them will really prove beneficial for their future,” said one principal of a city school. Schools like St Stanislaus (Bandra), Holy Family (Andheri), Cathedral and John Connon (Fort), Sacred Heart (Santacruz), Anjum-I-Islam (Fort), St Elias (Bandra) and St Michael (Mahim) etc. are among 14 schools where the seminars are to be held.

Shafique Shaikh, the ‘Superman’ in ‘Malegaon ka Superman’, is the new poster boy for the Voice of Tobacco Victims campaign.

by The Diarist | thediarist@themetrognome.in

Some people inspire even in death. Shafique Shaikh (28), the actor who got rave reviews for his entertaining portrayal of Superman in the film Malegaon Ka Superman, died an untimely death last year after a battle with mouth cancer. However, he is now the poster boy for the ongoing Voice of Tobacco Victims, a country-wide campaign by doctors and victims of oral cancer caused by chewing tobacco.

The campaign yesterday released its new public awareness poster, featuring Shafique in his best-remembered Superman avatar. The poster attacks the gutka lobby, which it says is upset with the ban on sale of gutka in 14 states in India, of which Maharashtra was the first to implement the ban. The poster (see pic) displays Shafique and identifies him as a victim of gutka addiction, and states that 6.5 crore Indians like the late actor are slowly becoming cancer patients.

Speaking to The Metrognome, Dr Prakash Gupta, of the Mumbai-based Healis Sekhsaria Institute for Public Health (which launched the campaign) and who is affiliated with Action Council Against Tobacco India, said, “In the film, Shafique was shown fighting tobacco, but in real life, he lost the battle to cancer. His story inspired us to take the campaign forward and let more people know that an individual like him was also lost to the evil of gutka. Gutka manufacturers are asking if it is fair to ban gutka in 14 states when other substances causing addiction are still being sold. We ask: is it fair that crores of Indians are losing their lives due to cancer caused by gutka?”

The campaign was initiated in May 2008, and is the brainchild of Dr Pankaj Chaturvedi, who is an associate professor at Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai. The campaign is driven by victims of tobacco themselves, who the campaign projects as the face of its initiatives. “Our most notable success has been in getting gutka sale banned in 14 Indian states. We made representations to all major Parliamentarians, Chief Ministers of several states, such important politicians as Sushma Swaraj, and several Cabinet Ministers. However, we plan to use this latest poster to strengthen the Tobacco Control Policy in India,” Dr Gupta explained.

Know more about The Voices of Tobacco Victims campaign here. As of now, over 30 renowned cancer surgeons, doctors, about 30 institutions and tobacco victims from all across the country are an active part of the campaign.

(Featured image courtesy newsbeats.in. Poster courtesy Healis Sekhsaria Institute of Public Health, Mumbai)