New Delhi, Jan 3 : President Droupadi Murmu said on Friday that sympathy and compassion from doctors can bring a change to a cancer patient's life.

She said this while speaking at the inauguration of the KLE Cancer Hospital at Belagavi in Karnataka.

"It is the duty of healthcare professionals to provide comprehensive care, which addresses the physical and psychological needs of the cancer patients," the President said.

"Every word of sympathy and compassion that a doctor utters has the power to change the life of his patient for better," she added.

Notably, President Murmu also encouraged women to share their problems related to health.

She urged family members and society "to take the health of women more seriously and contribute pro-actively in taking care of them and facilitating appropriate timely treatment for them".

She said that often the health issues of girls and women are ignored in comparison to boys and men.

"Any such delay, especially in the case of cancer, could be critical," she said.

She also called for a "patient-centric and equitable, along with being world-class" healthcare system for cancer patients.

Further, the President called the need to spread awareness on the causes, diagnosis and treatment of cancer, as many cases occur either due to "ignorance of the patient and family or due to financial constraints".

"This delays the diagnosis and treatment of diseases, worsening the outcomes," she said.

Sharing global data on cancer, the President said that in 2022, there were an estimated 20 million new cancer cases and 9.7 million deaths worldwide.

In India, the incidence of cancer is about 100 patients for every one lakh people.

It is estimated to increase by about 13 per cent in 2025 as compared to 2020, said President Murmu, citing a study done by ICMR.

/IANS