Cancer is a large group of diseases that can start in almost any organ or tissue of the body when abnormal cells grow uncontrollably, and go beyond their usual boundaries to invade adjoining parts of the body. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), it is the second most common cause of death globally, accounting for millions of deaths every year. Lung, prostate, colorectal, stomach and liver cancer are the most common types of cancer in men, while breast, colorectal, lung, cervical and thyroid cancer are the most common among women. However, these are not necessarily the deadliest forms of cancer.

What makes cancer the deadliest depends upon how many people have it and what percentage of those people actually survive. Cancer researchers determine this on the basis of five-year relative survival. This is the percentage of people who are expected to survive the effects of a given cancer, excluding their risk of other possible causes of death, for five years past a diagnosis. It is also important to note that what makes cancer really deadly is that practically no cure for it. A cure for cancer would imply that there are no cancerous cells remaining in the body.

Here are the 5 deadliest cancers in the U.S., according to SEER five-year relative survival data for cases diagnosed between 2014 and 2020.

1. Pancreatic cancer occurs when cells in your pancreas, a gland in your abdomen that aids digestion, mutate and multiply out of control, forming a tumour. Major risk factors include smoking, obesity, diabetes, chronic pancreatitis, certain genetic mutations and environmental chemical exposure.

2. Esophageal cancer develops in the oesophagus, which is the tube that connects your throat to your stomach.

3. Liver cancer and intrahepatic bile duct cancer originate in the liver or bile ducts, often linked to hepatitis infections, heavy alcohol use, obesity, and aflatoxin exposure.

4. Lung and bronchus cancer primarily caused by smoking, secondhand smoke, and environmental pollutants, affects the lungs and airways, making it the leading cause of cancer death in the US.

5. Acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) is an aggressive blood and bone marrow cancer that progresses rapidly, often linked to genetic mutations, radiation exposure, and certain chemicals.

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India’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) has released the National Family Health Survey-6 (NFHS-6), showing major improvements in maternal healthcare, nutrition, immunization, and family planning across the country.

The nationwide survey, which covered nearly 6.79 lakh households across 715 districts, highlighted stronger healthcare access and improved outcomes for women and children in the country.

Key Findings of NFHS-6

The NFHS-6 was conducted during 2023-24 by MoHFW with the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS), Mumbai as the nodal agency.

Maternal Care

NFHS-6 recorded notable gains in maternal and child healthcare services nationwide. Nearly 96 per cent of pregnant women received antenatal care (ANC), while mothers receiving ANC during the first trimester increased from 70.0 per cent to 76.2 per cent.

The percentage of mothers receiving at least four ANC visits also rose from 58.5 per cent to 65.2 per cent, reflecting improved continuity of maternal healthcare services.

Institutional deliveries increased from 88.6 per cent to 90.6 per cent, bringing India closer to universal institutional delivery coverage.

Maternal nutrition indicators also improved significantly. Women consuming iron folic acid supplements for 100 days or more during pregnancy increased from 44.1 per cent to 54.9 per cent. Those consuming supplements for 180 days or more rose from 26.0 per cent to 37.8 per cent.

Family Planning

India’s Total Fertility Rate (TFR) remained stable at 2.0, while the Contraceptive Prevalence Rate (CPR) increased from 66.7 per cent to 69.1 per cent.

The findings reflect improved access to family planning services and the continued impact of government programs, including Mission Parivar Vikas.

Child Immunization

India also recorded progress towards universal immunization coverage. Full vaccination coverage among children aged 12-23 months increased from 83.8 per cent to 87.1 per cent based on vaccination cards.

More than 95 per cent of children received vaccinations through public health facilities, highlighting continued trust in the public healthcare system.

Coverage of major vaccines improved significantly. Rotavirus vaccination coverage surged from 36.4 per cent to 85.4 per cent, while coverage of the second dose of measles-containing vaccine increased from 58.6 per cent to 71.8 per cent.

The survey also found improvement in child health indicators. Symptoms of acute respiratory infection (ARI) among children declined from 2.8 per cent to 1.9 per cent, while severe diarrhea prevalence fell to 0.5 per cent.

The gains were attributed to stronger last-mile healthcare delivery, improved cold chain systems, digital tracking through U-WIN, and active community participation under the Universal Immunization Program.

Also read: Ebola: Inside India’s RT-PCR Tests For The Bundibugyo Strain| Explained

Child Nutrition Outcomes

NFHS-6 also reported encouraging progress in child nutrition indicators. More than 95 per cent of children under six months were breastfed during the survey period. The percentage of children breastfed within one hour of birth increased from 41.8 per cent to 50.1 per cent.

Stunting among children under five years declined sharply from 35.5 per cent to 29.3 per cent, indicating improvement in long-term nutritional outcomes.

Severe wasting declined from 7.7 per cent to 5.2 per cent, while underweight prevalence among children under five registered a marginal decline from 32.1 per cent to 31.8 per cent.

Infant and young child feeding practices also improved. Children aged 6-8 months receiving solid or semi-solid food along with breastmilk increased from 45.9 per cent to 59.5 per cent.

Amid the ongoing deadly Ebola outbreak, the World Health Organization (WHO) has identified experimental treatments and vaccine candidates for the Bundibugyo strain, which currently has no approved vaccine or antiviral treatment.

The global health agency convened several expert and advisory groups and recommended prioritizing treatment of Bundibugyo cases with:

• Mapp Biopharmaceutical's MBP134
• Regeneron’s maftivimab
• Gilead Sciences’ antiviral remdesivir

In addition, the WHO also advised evaluating combination therapy using a monoclonal antibody together with remdesivir.

The advisory groups recommended that all identified products should be used exclusively within clinical trials to generate robust data and ensure safe, ethical, and effective research.

Preventive Therapies, Vaccine Candidates

Beyond treatment, the WHO also proposed therapies for the prevention of Bundibugyo cases.

• For post-exposure prophylaxis among contacts of confirmed and probable cases, the oral antiviral obeldesivir was identified as a priority candidate.

• The expert groups also identified the single-dose rVSV Bundibugyo vaccine, being developed by the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI), as the most promising vaccine candidate.

The development of the vaccine is expected to take approximately 7–9 months before it can be assessed through clinical trials for its ability to prevent Bundibugyo disease (BDV).

• Another vaccine candidate, ChAdOx1 Bundibugyo — being developed by Oxford University and the Serum Institute of India — could potentially become available within 2–3 months for efficacy assessment through a clinical trial. However, additional animal data are still required to support and confirm further prioritization.

• The experts also reviewed the potential role of Merck's Ervebo, the only licensed Ebola vaccine currently available.

The WHO stated that Ervebo should not be used outside carefully designed research settings so that its performance against Bundibugyo disease can be properly assessed.

Meanwhile, Regeneron said in a statement that supplies of maftivimab are already available in the Democratic Republic of Congo, if the WHO decides to utilize the treatment immediately or include it as part of additional studies.

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Russian Vaccine For New Strain

Meanwhile, Russia has claimed that its scientists have developed a novel vaccine against a new Ebola strain.

According to Russian Health Minister Murashko, "the vaccine may also protect against the rare Bundibugyo strain linked to the current outbreak in the DR Congo".

It is because the "genetic similarity between this virus variant and the vaccine strain is about 60-70%," Alexander Gintsburg, scientific director of the Gamaleya National Center of Epidemiology and Microbiology, was quoted as saying GxP News.

The rare Bundibugyo strain has so far caused over 900 cases and more than 200 deaths in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda.

Ahead of World No Tobacco Day (WNTD) 2026, India has launched the pilot phase of the Tobacco-Free Educational Institutions (ToFEI) Application.

Union Health Secretary Punya Salila Srivastava today launched the application under the National Tobacco Control Programme (NTCP) at Kartavya Bhawan, reaffirming India’s commitment towards protecting present and future generations from the devastating health, social, economic and environmental consequences of tobacco and nicotine addiction.

The pilot project will be rolled out in three states — Rajasthan, Meghalaya, and Maharashtra. It is expected to help assess operational feasibility, strengthen implementation and reporting mechanisms, and inform future nationwide expansion of the platform.

What Is ToFEI?

ToFEI guidelines are a set of standards established by the government to protect minors from tobacco addiction. It requires campuses to display warning signage, assign tobacco monitors, maintain a 100-yard tobacco-free zone, and regularly organize awareness activities.

The digital application of ToFEI is aimed at strengthening the implementation and monitoring of these tobacco-free norms across schools and colleges in the country.

Also read: Herbal Cigarettes Not Safe, Found High In Fine Particles And Lead: Study

The application will facilitate:

• Self-assessment and reporting by educational institutions
• Monitoring of compliance with ToFEI guidelines
• Implementation of tobacco control signage requirements
• Prohibition of the sale of tobacco products within 100 yards of educational institutions
• Awareness and sensitization activities for students and teachers
• Strengthening enforcement of tobacco-free campus measures

SOP for Tobacco Product Sample Collection

The government also released the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for Sample Collection of Tobacco Products, aimed at strengthening surveillance, regulatory compliance, and quality assurance related to tobacco products.

The SOP provides standardized procedures for:

• Collection
• Handling
• Storage
• Transportation
• Documentation of tobacco product samples.

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“Tobacco and nicotine products are often designed and marketed in ways that make them appear attractive, particularly to youth, through appealing flavors, packaging, surrogate advertising, and portrayals on social media and digital platforms,” Srivastava said.

The Union Health Secretary further stated that tobacco use contributes significantly to cancers, cardiovascular diseases, stroke, chronic respiratory illnesses, and several other non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which account for a major proportion of mortality and disability in the country.

Highlighting India’s continued leadership in advancing evidence-based tobacco control policies, she noted that over 2,000 Tobacco Cessation Centers have been established across the country in district hospitals, medical colleges, dental colleges, AYUSH institutions, NCD clinics, and other healthcare facilities.

She also emphasized the importance of encouraging educational institutions and campuses to adopt and sustain tobacco-free practices.

Tobacco Prevalence In India

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India is the world’s second-largest consumer and producer of tobacco. A variety of tobacco products are available at very low prices across the country.

Nearly 267 million adults aged 15 years and above in India — around 29 per cent of all adults — use tobacco, according to the Global Adult Tobacco Survey India 2016-17.

The most prevalent form of tobacco use in India is smokeless tobacco, with commonly used products including khaini, gutkha, betel quid with tobacco, and zarda. Smoking forms of tobacco include bidi, cigarettes, and hookah.