Safdarjung hospital has acquired a gamma camera to help detect cancer in the body. The service will be free for BPL families and Central government health scheme card holders.
Over 8,000 patients visit the Safdarjung hospital daily, out of which 200-300 are cancer patients. Earlier, patients were sent to the Institute of Nuclear Medicine and Allied Sciences and adjacent All India Institute of Medical Sciences for primary scanning and detection.
“Safdarjung hospital has acquired a new isotope gamma camera that will help detect cancerous tumours anywhere in the body. Earlier, we had to send our patients to AIIMS or to INMAS but now we can examine our patients here only which will accelerate the speed of treatment,” medical superintendent Dr N.K. Mohanty said.
“No amount will be charged from the BPL families and the CGHS card holders. Only 25 per cent of the market price will be charged from general patients,” Dr Mohanty added. The machine costs over Rs 5 crores and has been purchased from Holland. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board has carried out the required tests and is slated to give final approval on June 30.