PANAJI: Goa’s efforts to establish a comprehensive State Cancer Registry have hit a roadblock, with private hospitals and healthcare institutions yet to begin submitting cancer patient data to the Health Department.
While government-run healthcare facilities have started sharing cancer-related information with the Directorate of Health Services (DHS), the absence of reports from private hospitals has raised concerns about the completeness of the proposed database.
The initiative follows the State government’s decision to classify cancer as a notifiable disease under the Goa Public Health Act, making it mandatory for healthcare providers to report newly diagnosed cases.
So far, records have been received from Goa Medical College and the two district hospitals. The DHS is currently scrutinising the submitted data to remove duplicate entries before incorporating verified cases into the State Cancer Registry.
To ensure wider participation, the Health Department is considering approaching the Indian Medical Association (IMA) to encourage private practitioners and hospital managements to comply with the reporting requirements.
Under the notification, doctors, hospitals, diagnostic laboratories and other healthcare establishments involved in cancer diagnosis and treatment must report newly detected cases within seven days. The maximum permitted reporting period is one month from the date of diagnosis.
The DHS will serve as the nodal authority for maintaining the central database, with a designated Chief Medical Officer under the Non-Communicable Diseases programme overseeing the collection of information.
The government has also emphasised patient privacy, stating that individual records will remain confidential, while publicly released statistics will be anonymised and presented in aggregate form.
The need for a comprehensive database is underscored by existing figures, which show that Goa recorded 4,762 cancer-related deaths between 2021 and 2025, while more than 8,600 new cases were registered during the same period.
Officials believe that a complete cancer registry will help the State understand disease trends, identify high-risk areas, strengthen screening programmes and improve healthcare planning.
However, without the participation of private hospitals, a substantial gap could remain in the State’s efforts to build an accurate picture of Goa’s cancer burden.
