India’s cancer statistics reveal a troubling contradiction: women are being diagnosed more often, yet men are dying in greater numbers. This is not a quirk of biology alone but the outcome of lifestyle habits, social behaviour, and the way public health systems are built. Among Indian women, breast, cervical, and ovarian cancers dominate the charts. Many of these are either hormone-driven or infection-related, and awareness campaigns have made early screening far more common.

From reproductive health check-ups to targeted outreach on cervical and breast cancer, women are more likely to encounter the health system before symptoms become fatal. Early detection saves lives, and the results are visible in lower mortality rates despite rising incidence. Men, on the other hand, face a different reality. Oral and lung cancers, both closely tied to tobacco and alcohol, remain the leading killers. These cancers are........

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