3D illustration of Lung cancer diagnosis and Human lungs disease | Photo Credit: iStockphoto

Telangana Government has declared cancer as a “notifiable disease” throughout the State, making it mandatory for all public and private hospitals to report cancer cases.

With this, it is now mandatory for all public and private hospitals, labs, health care facilities and registrars of births and deaths in the State to report such cases within one month of diagnosis or registration through the portal in the prescribed format.

Presently, only institution-level registries are maintained at the Nizam’s Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS), Hyderabad, and the Mehdi Nawaz Jung Institute of Oncology and Regional Cancer Centre (MNJIORCC), Hyderabad, under the State Government.

The burden of non-communicable diseases is increasing steadily and has become a major public health concern. Cancer has emerged as a significant cause of morbidity and mortality, underscoring the need for a systematic and institutional mechanism to capture reliable and timely information on the disease burden in the State, the Government said in an order issued on Tuesday.

“Accurate and comprehensive data on cancer incidence and prevalence, distribution and types are essential for assessing the magnitude and pattern of disease in the State, identifying risk factors, geographical and demographic variations and for evolving an effective screening strategy,” it said.

Cancer registration would provide information on diagnosis, treatment, palliative care, rehabilitative services and long-term follow-up. Targeted policies and evaluation of interventions undertaken will channel effective resource management, it added.

Published on April 7, 2026