GUWAHATI: The state health department and the Mumbai-based Tata Trusts on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding to provide advanced treatment to cancer patients in the region. Health minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said the five medical college hospitals of Assam would each get a 100-bed oncology wing with advanced equipment like linear accelerators, cobalt machines, PET/CT scan machines and MRI within 2018.

"Through this MoU, we have formed a cancer grid with Tata Trusts at the top, the cancer hospital at the Gauhati Medical College Hospital and Dr B Borooah Cancer Institute in the middle and the district hospitals at the bottom. The finest machines will be made available to the district hospitals," Sarma said. He added that Tata Trusts had also agreed to help build a separate oncology wing in upcoming medical colleges in Lakhimpur, Dhubri and Diphu.

"We will provide land and manpower, while the trust will give us equipment. We will travel to Mumbai next month to sign a complete agreement," he said.

Employees to run the oncology units will be recruited by the state government but trained by Tata Trusts. The partnership aims to provide quality cancer care in the state, formulate a cancer-control programme, facilitate early detection of the disease, and develop and upgrade comprehensive treatment infrastructure.

"The objective of the MoU is to provide accessible and comprehensive cancer care to the people," R Venkataramanan, managing trustee of Tata Trusts, said.

