Yesterday, the city marked World Cancer Day in a number of different ways. Survivors were honoured, awareness drives were held as doctors hammered home yet again the importance of early detection in cancer. In one such programme, women’s teams played football matches at the Azad Maidan in SoBo, in an initiative to raise awareness about breast cancer.

Cancer institutes from across the country gave statistics about the rising incidence of cancer in India, outlined the most common cancers for men and women and advocated lifestyle changes, including big changes in diet. Elsewhere in the world, some doctors were talking about how more than 60 per cent of cancers are now curable, early diagnosis being of key importance. One report states that the World Health Organisation (WHO) scientists state that the globe is facing a tsunami of cancer and there is an urgent need to focus on prevention by tackling smoking, obesity and drinking.