Cancer care in crisis: PGI's slow procurement leaves patients in fix
The delay, exacerbated by the 'Made in India' exemption clause in procurement policies, not only caused immense financial burden on families but also directly jeopardised timely cancer staging and treatment decisions.
The Ga-68 generator, a vital component for Ga DOTA scans used in staging solid tumours, particularly neuroendocrine tumours, was out of stock for a few years, despite each generator lasting only six months.
This critical scan helps doctors determine if cancer is localised or has spread, directly influencing life-saving treatment plans such as surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation therapy.
The scan costs Rs 7,000 in PGI, which is almost four times more in a private centre. When PGI authorities were contacted, they did not respond. Adding to the woes, sources within the department revealed that even essential chemical reagents required for the cyclotron – which produces isotopes for cancer diagnosis and treatment – were in short supply.
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In fact, some doctors are using their personal "learning resources allowance" to procure these vital chemicals.
"We have no dearth of funding for patient utility," said a senior PGI doctor on condition of anonymity, "but the procurement process is so agonisingly slow that it poses a significant risk to cancer patients. Every day counts in cancer diagnosis and treatment."
The core of the problem, according to PGI officials, lies in the 'Made in India' exemption clause, which, while well-intentioned, often snarls the procurement of essential medical equipment and reagents in bureaucratic red tape. This left the PGI struggling to acquire even basic radiopharmaceuticals like Oxygen-18 enriched water, crucial for Positron Emission Tomography (PET) scans in cancer detection.
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