All About Breast Cancer Relapse

This week started with filmmaker Tahira Kashyap Khurrana sharing the news of her relapse after being cancer-free for seven years.

- Abigail Banerji

She was diagnosed in 2018 with breast cancer, one of the most common types seen in Indian women.

India ranked third in terms of cancer incidence and second for mortality among the Southeast Asian countries. A 2024 Lok Sabha document stated that India was at the top with the number of estimated breast cancer deaths (98,337) in 2022. In 2023, the estimated number of cases rose to 2,21,579 from 2,00,218 in 2019.

To deal with this spike, the government made oral cancer, breast cancer and cervical cancer (the three most common types) an integral part of the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiovascular Diseases and Stroke (NPCDCS) in February.

Diagnosis and Relapse