Srinagar, July 26: Jammu and Kashmir recorded 68,804 estimated cancer cases between 2021 and 2025, with the number of cases increasing each year, according to data from the Indian Council of Medical Research’s (ICMR) National Cancer Registry Programme (NCRP) tabled in the Lok Sabha.
The figures were shared by Union Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare Prataprao Jadhav in reply to an unstarred question by Congress MP S. Jothimani.
According to the data, cancer cases in Jammu and Kashmir rose from 13,060 in 2021 to 13,395 in 2022, 13,744 in 2023, 14,112 in 2024 and 14,493 in 2025, reflecting an overall increase of nearly 11 per cent over five years.
The increase from 2024 to 2025 alone stood at 2.7 per cent.
The trend is broadly in line with the national pattern. Across India, estimated cancer cases increased from 14.26 lakh in 2021 to 15.69 lakh in 2025, while neighbouring Ladakh recorded a rise from 294 cases in 2021 to 326 in 2025.
The Minister informed Parliament that the Centre has rolled out population-based screening for oral, breast and cervical cancers under the National Health Mission through Ayushman Arogya Mandirs, targeting people above 30 years of age.
He said the country currently has 770 District NCD Clinics, 233 Cardiac Care Units, 6,410 NCD clinics at Community Health Centres and 524 Day Care Cancer Centres under the National Programme for Prevention and Control of Non-Communicable Diseases.
On cervical cancer prevention, Jadhav said a nationwide HPV vaccination campaign was launched on February 28, 2026, targeting around 1.2 crore girls aged 14 years across all States and Union Territories.
The Minister added that cancer treatment is covered under the Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, which provides health insurance of Rs 5 lakh per family annually, while affordable medicines are being made available through the Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi Pariyojana and AMRIT Pharmacies.
He said the Centre is also supporting the establishment of State Cancer Institutes and Tertiary Care Cancer Centres to improve access to cancer care.
