Unhealthy dynamics – Gender bias in cancer care reflects a larger health care crisis

Source: The post is based on articles

“Unhealthy dynamics – Gender bias in cancer care reflects a larger health care crisis” published in Business Standard on 29^th September 2023 and

“Lancet report on cancer in women is a wake-up call” published in The Indian Express on 29^th September 2023.

Syllabus: GS 2 – Social Issues – Issues Relating to Development and Management of Services related to Health

Relevance: concerns with increasing cancer in women.

News: The Lancet recently published research titled “Women, Power and Cancer” that looked at women and cancer in 185 nations. It discovered a connection between social power dynamics and women’s access to cancer treatment.

What are the key findings of the report?

Read Here: Nearly 69 lakh cancer deaths among Indian women were preventable: What a study says on gender and the disease

What are the reasons behind higher cancer incidence and mortality rate among women?

Lack of knowledge: Many women are not aware of the different types of cancer and their causes.

Lack of Financial and Decision-making power: Women often lack the financial power and decision-making power to go for regular checkups and screening for early diagnosis.

Reluctance to be examined by male doctors: Many women are reluctant to be examined by male doctors.

Lack of women doctors: There is a severe scarcity of competent female doctors, particularly in rural regions. Only approximately 17% of allopathic physicians are women, and only 6% of those are in rural regions.

Travel difficulties: Due to their family responsibilities, rural women find it difficult to travel to large cities or towns for screening and treatment.

Lack of Women Empowerment: Maternal and reproductive health are the only focuses of women’s health. Additionally, they are less likely and empowered to be checked for cancer early due to a lack of decision-making power, education, work, and access to healthcare facilities.

Another study also found that only 37% of women had access to healthcare compared to 67% of men. This highlights the lack of healthcare facilities that women have in their own healthcare.

What can be done to improve women’s access to healthcare?

First, India’s public healthcare system needs to improve women’s access to cancer care.

Government health schemes for women in India are mostly focused on expectant and new mothers, and other important aspects of women’s healthcare, such as cancer screening and regular checkups, are often overlooked.

However, the Ayushman Bharat health insurance scheme offers a potential solution, as women account for 49% of all beneficiaries. Hence, empowering women with greater agency in healthcare can lead to a significant benefit.

Second, there is also a need to collect and update sociodemographic data in cancer, do more research on the risks that women face, and be more sensitive and responsive to the challenges that women face due to their gender, social status, and other factors.