Aligarh Medical Alumni Association of North America
Aligarh Medical Alumni Association of North America
Establishing a Comprehensive Cancer Center at JNMC, AMU, Aligarh: A Vision Statement
Background
More than a year ago, Dr Shams received a call from a high school friend from Aligarh. His dad had just been diagnosed with HCC, a primary liver cancer with a high mortality rate. He was seeking help and guidance. He reached out to his colleagues and friends in JNMCH and found that transferring the patient to New Delhi was the only option available, and it happened to be a common answer for those who seek higher care at the hospital. Then someone asked in our WhatsApp group about oncologic services at JNMC for some family member back home and found that not many resources are available.
Being an Intervention Radiologist/Oncologist (IR/IO) by profession, treating cancer by novel methods, in addition to the supportive care for cancer diagnosis and management, is the norm for Dr Shams, as also for anyone treating cancer patients here in the US. The stress that a cancer patient goes through at the time of diagnosis is something not everyone can understand. In addition, the family who could provide some relief is itself devastated. And to add insult to injury, India still being predominantly a self-pay health care system, hits the patient with financial stress through exorbitant bills. In this setting, JNMCH can be a beacon of hope, and guide these patients and their family in the darkest phase of their life. This makes building a fully functional cancer center at JNMCH, an imperative.
Cancer is an emerging public health challenge in India, with incidence and mortality steadily increasing across the past decade. Current estimates indicate more than 1.5 million new cancer cases annually, with nearly 800,000 cancer-related deaths. Uttar Pradesh, being the most populous state, bears a disproportionately high cancer burden, often presenting at advanced stages due to delayed detection and limited access to specialized care.
Located in Western Uttar Pradesh, Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College (JNMC), Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) serves a catchment population of nearly 20 million across Aligarh, Hathras, Etah, Firozabad, Budaun, and neighboring districts. Despite its role as a tertiary care academic center, JNMC currently lacks a dedicated and integrated cancer care facility. The absence of comprehensive oncology services forces patients to travel to metropolitan cancer centers, contributing to diagnostic delays, treatment interruptions, financial hardships, and reduced survival.
Patients with suspected or diagnosed cancers at JNMC encounter fragmented care pathways. While departments such as Surgery, Radiology, Pathology, Gynecology, Medicine and ENT manage individual aspects of oncologic care, a coordinated cancer management framework is lacking. Limited radiotherapy infrastructure and absence of a dedicated medical oncology unit mean patients must often travel to Delhi, Lucknow, Varanasi, or Meerut for treatment.
JNMC possesses strong clinical, academic, and infrastructural foundations that make it well-positioned to evolve into a regional cancer center. These include experienced multispecialty faculty, diagnostic capabilities, operation theaters, research environment, and availability of land for expansion.
Present State
For the past few years, Dr Shams Iqbal has been visiting JNMCH, demonstrating and performing various interventional procedures alongside the radiologists and providing guidance towards building a novel IR division. However, we felt the need to have a more comprehensive Cancer Center at our Alma mater. As a member of the Aligarh Medical Alumni Association of North America (AMAANA), Dr Iqbal has had discussions with other colleagues and the administration at JNMCH and more importantly, AMU, including with the Vice Chancellor Prof Naima Khatoon. The Radiation Oncology department under the leadership of Dr Mohammed Akram, has been extremely busy managing an ever-increasing load of Oncology patients, seeing a rise of almost 80% from 2022 to 2025, and still increasing putting the system and resources under extreme pressure. The VC Prof Naima Khatoon championed the approval of Linear Accelerator for the Radiation Oncology department, which is a huge step towards the goal.
Action
AMAANA members had some discussions within the group about the availability of cancer treatment at JNMC last year, some recounting their personal experiences for their family members. Our President at the time, Dr Reshma Mahmood started the discussion with the then Dean, Dr Veena Maheshwari and our executive. We developed/created a SWOT analysis document to understand the process and had a Zoom meeting with her where the points raised in our SWOT analysis were discussed. Multiple such discussions between AMAANA and the stakeholders at JNMCH led to the beginning of collaborative Multidisciplinary Clinical Tumor Board meetings where JNMC colleagues invited members of AMAANA who are experts in their fields for discussing treatments options. Soon we created a Cancer Center Initiative Committee with Dr Shams Iqbal, Dr Hina Khan, a medical oncologist at Brown University, Dr Anand Sharma (a Head & Neck oncologist), Dr Sakeer Hussain, a medical oncologist, Dr Gaurav Gupta, a hemato- pathologist and others. We have had a few such meetings and hope to continue them. The vision is to take this further and make it into a regular affair. This has been a great success so far!
Ideally a comprehensive cancer center should have all the pillars of Oncology which include Medical Oncology, Radiation Oncology, Surgical Oncology, Interventional Oncology and Palliative care but in discussions with colleagues from some of the departments, we found them lacking in infrastructure despite the clinical expertise.
Meanwhile Dr Iqbal, being an athlete, marathon runner, and bike rider, decided to start raising funds for the proposed initiative. He rode for 165 miles from Boston to Cape Cod and raised significant amount of money. He has also reached out to alumni across the globe and has some donors committed to our noble cause.
In one of our meetings we invited Prof Samina Salim of ‘Aligs Care’, a non-profit providing palliative and rehabilitative services to patients and families affected by cancer to discuss collaboration. She was very excited to hear about our initiative, and is on board with AMAANA. She brings with her a wealth of resources, energy, and expertise and is well supported financially.
The current President, Dr Tazeen Beg reached out to the Director of Stony Brook Cancer Center, Dr Aaron Sasson, a surgical oncologist expert in liver and pancreatic cancer to discuss support for our project in terms of exchange of knowledge and expertise and possible collaboration and has had encouraging talks with him. Meanwhile, AMAANA invited the VC Prof Naima Khatoon in November 2025 to grace our Reunion and meeting in Maryland as the Chief Guest. The Cancer Center Initiative Committee members and AMAANA EC also had a meeting with her specifically to apprise her of our collaborative vision for a comprehensive cancer center at JNMC. We found her very receptive to our requests. A meeting was also arranged between the VC and Dr Sasson to discuss a possible collaboration between the Stony Brook Cancer Center and JNMC. Dr Sasson personally gave us a tour of the center after a presentation about the status of cancer care at JNMC. He was very encouraging, attended one of our meetings regarding the initiative and has expressed willingness to join the collaborative tumor board meetings with JNMC.
Dr Iqbal suggests an Endowment Model very similar to the Harvard University model that could be a long-term solution to raise funds. If we, the alumni, who have so much love for AMU could add some endowments in our estate plans and living wills, it could definitely be very helpful ensuring the freedom and development of our institute in the foreseeable future.
Our group has identified certain limitations for the development of the Cancer Center and funds to cover the costs that may need our support. The list is not exhaustive but just a minimal requirement for the establishment of the center. As we all know from our
collective experience, the field of cancer diagnosis and treatment is extremely fluid, with the latest focus on personalized oncology and targeted therapy. Research including clinical trials is also a significant part of a comprehensive cancer center and we hope to pursue that in the future.
We have identified some major areas requiring immediate attention and funds which are highlighted below:
Budget Requirements and Phased Development
|
Component
|
Estimated Cost (USD)
|
|---|---|
|
Brachytherapy Unit
|
$300K
|
|
PET-CT & Molecular Lab
|
$1-1.2 million
|
|
Interventional Oncology Suite (Angio
Room)
|
$1 million
|
|
Chemotherapy Day Care & 20-Bed
Oncology Ward
|
$250 K
|
|
Infrastructure, Shielding & Civil Works
|
$2 million
|
|
Human Resources & Training (3 Years)
|
$300K
|
|
Total Estimated Cost:
|
$5 million
|
As an integral part of AMAANA’s mission, the Cancer Center Initiative, would benefit from the support of all alumni. We appeal to you all to please come and join this noble cause and support our alma mater. Just a few days ago, an ultrasound machine costing 12.5 lac rupees was donated by the families of two JNMC alumni facilitated by Dr Shams Iqbal.
For further discussion/questions and ways to donate and help out, please reach out to us at drshams241@gmail.com or jnmcaaana@gmail.com or amaana.jnmc@gmail.com