Patients hit as post-operative specimen biopsy unit at State-run Kidwai cancer hospital in Bengaluru stops functioning

Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology in Bengaluru
| Photo Credit: File photo

Patients visiting the State-run Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology (KMIO) in Bengaluru are finding it hard to get post-operative specimen biopsies done as the only histopathology machine is out of order. 

Histopathology services are essential for the diagnosis, staging, and treatment planning of cancer patients. Biopsy is often the first step in the diagnostic process while histopathology is used to confirm the diagnosis and provide additional information about the nature and severity of the condition.

Although delayed, small biopsies, such as needle biopsy for diagnosis of new patients, are being done. The worst affected are those who have undergone surgery and waiting to know the stage of cancer. This is because the post-operative specimen biopsies have almost come to a standstill, with a backlog of over 3,000 specimen samples at the laboratory, according to sources.

Tissue embedding station

Sources said the tissue embedding station was procured in 2011 at a cost of over ₹20 lakh. With a service life of 10 years, this unit has been under repair since 2023. Although a request was made to install a new unit in 2023, the tender process was delayed due to various reasons. Now, the tender process is over and it is at the work order stage. However, work orders cannot be issued as the institute does not have a signing authority.

Attributing the problem to frequent administrative changes, sources pointed out that the term of Kidwai’s administrator Naveen Bhat Y.,  who is also the State Mission Director, National Health Mission (NHM), ended on March 13. The in-charge director does not have signing power.  The institute has seen five directors and two administrators in the last one year.

Frequent admin changes

Frequent changes in the administration has delayed the tendering process for procurement of life-saving medicines and consumables.  Patients are forced to buy expensive cancer drugs from outside, even if they are covered under health schemes. 

Since February 2024, when the former director V. Lokesh was suspended based on the report of a three-member committee, the premier cancer care centre has not had a full-time director. Dr. Lokesh, who headed the Department of Radiation Oncology, had been appointed as director on October 17, 2022. 

In-charge Medical Superintendent and professor of radiation oncology Naveen T. was given additional charge as director on January 31 this year. This followed the superannuation of Ravi Arjun, who was appointed as in-charge director on December 21, 2024.

Dr. Naveen had brought the issue to the notice of Medical Education Minister Sharan Prakash Patil. “Meanwhile, we are using the services of the private lab located in our premises, and are trying to clear the backlog. The post-operative specimen biopsies — that usually took around two weeks — are now taking longer than three weeks. There is no issue with small biopsies,” he said.

Order soon

Mr Sharan Prakash Patil admitted to being aware of the problem. He told The Hindu that the NHM Mission Director would get an extension as Kidwai administrator. “The order will be issued in a day or two. He will issue the work order for the new equipment soon after assuming charge, and the issue will be sorted out,” he said.

The Minister is trying to initiate the process of appointing a full-time director at the earliest.