A national cancer grid has been proposed by the department of atomic energy (DAE) to introduce uniform standards of care and reduce patient flow to its 'mother' hospital in the city and is likely to get approval at the atomic energy commission meeting during the weekend.

The proposed cancer grid will link the department's Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai, which specialises in cancer treatment with centres in Kolkata, Jorhat and Bhopal. The proposal has recommended for good infrastructure and development of adequate human resource in other centres," the TMC director Dr R A Badwe said adding the research activities will also be integrated through this grid among the institutions.

The proposal also said the seamless connectivity will be made through the very high speed National Knowledge Network, he said.

The cancer centres at Shillong (which is expected to be ready by one and half years) and a new hospital that the department of atomic energy plans to set up in its upcoming complex at Visakhapatnam will also be connected, he said.

"Cancer patients from across the country, particularly eastern and northeastern parts, throng the Tata Memorial Centre in Mumbai as it provides the best standards of cancer care in India. It gets patients from across the country, including the east," atomic energy commission chairman Srikumar Banerjee said.

After initial phase of treatment, they need to visit the TMC at least once every year for medical check ups and follow-up treatment, he said.

"The grid will allow patients to access similar standards of care from a hospital closer to their own place of stay," Badwe said.

These patients can visit the centres at Kolkata (the 150-bedded Tata Memorial Hospital which will become operational by October this year), Jorhat or Shillong and send across their medical reports to TMC using the grid.

Oncologists visiting the remote centre can advise them on the future course of treatment, he added.

The grid will also connect those hospitals with communicating facilities like some of them in Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) and Vellore (Tamil Nadu), Badwe said.

When asked about the human resource, Badwe said, there would be training programme for three years and around 30 to 35 persons will be trained annually for distribution between three or four hospitals, he said.

TMC is already using telemedicine facility in a big way and this national cancer grid will further help the patients living in remote corners of the country, Badwe said.