- Internationally-renowned expert in Head and Neck Cancer, Dr Jatin Shah will inaugurate the hospital on Saturday
- Dr Vishal Choksi, a director of Northwest Cancer Hospital, and a prominent Head and Neck cancer surgeon was a student or Dr Jatin Shah at Memorial Sloan-Kettering, in USA
- The founding directors of Northwest Cancer Hospital are three H&N surgeons, Drs Vishal Choksi, Shakti Singh Deora and Zuber Vaja, neurosurgeon Dr Suvidh Turakhia and anesthesiologist Dr Paresh Shah.
NE HEALTH BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, SEP 1
Internationally-renowned expert in Head and Neck Cancer Dr Jatin Shah will inaugurate the Gujarat’s first dedicated Head and Neck cancer hospital – Northwest Cancer Hospital in Ahmedabad on Saturday.
Stating that India is the cancer capital of the world, Dr Jatin Shah, said, in the treatment of cancer we have come a long way, having made progress from patients receiving care in a General Hospital, to a Cancer Center to a specialized and focused multidisciplinary comprehensive superspecialty hospital where the entire team has only one mission, “State of the art world class care of the patient with head and neck cancer, to improve, survive and achieve the best quality of life. Dr Vishal Choksi and his team are set to establish new standards of state-of-the-art care for patients with head and neck cancer in Ahmedabad. This is a bold step, and will set an example for others to follow”.
In his career spanning over 50 years, Dr Shah has globally trained over 100 surgeons directly and thousands of medical practitioners indirectly with missionary zeal to contain this cancer menace. “In fight against cancer, we have to reach to the last mile. Thus, my dream is to strengthen the teams of surgeons working in all parts of the country where they can detect early signs and send the patients for expert care to cure them. This will be a life-long journey for the patient and the doctor alike,” Dr Shah added.
According to a 2016 study, at least one-third of all cancer cases reported in India are those of Head and Neck cancer—a critical condition which calls for highly specialized and sophisticated treatment. In Gujarat alone, every second male cancer patient is a victim of Head and Neck cancer. Despite the high incidence of these cancers in Gujarat, till today there is no specialised multidisciplinary hospital for the treatment of such cancers in the region. Fortunately, Gujarat is finally getting its first dedicated Head and Neck cancer hospital with the launch of Northwest Cancer Hospital in Ahmedabad. The hospital will address the region’s long-standing need for a dedicated oncology facility that will provide international standards of medical care for Head and Neck cancer patients.
Dr Jatin Shah is an internationally-acclaimed leader in Head and Neck surgery who has served as the president of the American Head and Neck Society, and several national and international organizations in this specialty, A native of Vadodara, he pursued his higher medical education in New York and rose to be the first person of Gujarati origin to lead the most prominent Head and Neck Cancer department in the world, at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, in New York. He was also the first person of Indian origin to lead a pan-USA oncology society. Presently, he is Professor of Surgery, at the Weil Medical College of Cornell University and holds The Elliott W. Strong Chair in Head and Neck Oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City.
Dr Vishal Choksi, a director of Northwest Cancer Hospital, and a prominent Head and Neck cancer surgeon who trained under Dr Jatin Shah at Memorial Sloan-Kettering, in USA said, “According to the latest figures by the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Ahmedabad has the highest incidence of mouth cancers nationwide. In males, some 56% of all cancers in Ahmedabad are tobacco related in males, of which 70% are in the head and neck region. Among women, 18.6% of cancers in Ahmedabad are tobacco-related, of which 60% are in the head and neck region. This is where Northwest Cancer Hospital, a dedicated oncology facility, will play a key role in addressing the critical need of Head and Neck cancer patients.”
Speaking with navjeevanexpress.com, Dr Chokshi said, “Our hospital has not tied up with the state or central government to offer free treatment. However, it is our mission not to turn away any patient for want of money. We will try our best to offer this life-saving treatment in this facility.”
Ideally located in the heart of Ahmedabad city, the hospital offers a range of oncology services including Head and Neck cancer surgery, reconstructive surgery, neurosurgery, thyroid and parathyroid surgery, minimally invasive Head and Neck surgery and dental oncology and rehabilitation services. The rehabilitation of H&N patients is an equally important aspect of cancer treatment that is typically under served and overlooked. The team at Northwest Cancer hospital is committed to making a positive difference in the area of H&N rehabilitation as well.
The founding directors of Northwest Cancer Hospital are three H&N surgeons, Drs Vishal Choksi, Shakti Singh Deora and Zuber Vaja, neurosurgeon Dr Suvidh Turakhia and anesthesiologist Dr Paresh Shah.
The hospital is equipped with a 25-bed indoor patient facility, two ultra-modern, class-100 modular operating theatres with laminar airflow, a 7-bed ultra-modern and spacious ICU with central monitoring, a separate isolation and private ICU room, ultra-modern instrumentation, day-care and chemotherapy facilities among others.
For more information about the healthcare, contact 9033330406.
