Colorectal Cancer ( Colon Cancer ) Treatment Cost in India

The cost of colon cancer treatment in India starts from USD$ 8000 and is conducted across many multispecialty hospitals.

Colorectal Cancer treatment package cost in India has different inclusions and exclusions. Typically, this package covers all expenses related to the patient's pre and post-surgery care, encompassing the fees of the surgeon, hospitalization, and anesthesia. However, costs may escalate if there are complications post-operatively, or if a new medical condition is diagnosed outside the package duration.

There are about 61 top hospitals for colorectal cancer treatment in India, with some of the most renowned ones listed below:

1. Manipal Hospital, Yeshwantpur
2. Wockhardt Hospital - A New Age Hospital
3. Metro Hospital, Noida
4. Apollo Hospitals Bannerghatta
5. Dr.Rela Institute and Medical Centre
6. Apollo Hospital International Limited
7. W Pratiksha Hospital
8. Ruby Hall Clinic
9. Sri Ramachandra Medical Centre
10. Fortis Flt. Lt. Rajan Dhall Hospital

After discharge from the hospital, the patient has to stay for another 30 days in the country for complete recovery. During this time, the patient undergoes medical tests and consultations. this is to ensure that the treatment was successful and the patient us safe to return.

Besides India, several other countries are popular choices for colon cancer surgery, as listed below

1. Israel
2. Thailand
3. Malaysia
4. Turkey
5. South Africa

Apart from the colorectal cancer treatment cost, the patient may have to pay for additional daily expenses such as for a guest house after discharge and meals. The per day extra expenses in India per person is about USD 25.

After the Colorectal Cancer Treatment takes place, the average duration of stay at the hospital is about 4 days. During the recovery, the patient is carefully monitored and control tests are performed to see that everything is okay. If required, physiotherapy sessions are also planned during recovery in hospital.

The overall rating for hospitals providing Colorectal Cancer ( Colon Cancer ) Treatment in India is 4.6. Several parameters such as hospital infrastructure, pricing policy, quality of services, politeness of staff etc. contribute to the rating.

Gradually, India is getting its due recognition in the field of medicine and especially for Colon Cancer Treatment. In India, the most-recognized hospitals ‘medical facilities provided to the patients are remarkable just like India’s counterparts such as the United States of America, Singapore, etc. The Indian hospitals’ prominence goes a notch higher due to the affordable treatment costs of Colon Cancer.

The outstanding hospitals situated in India for Colon Cancer Treatment are well-equipped with state-of-the-art healthcare facilities. These hospitals make use of highly advanced MRI and CT technology and other modern diagnostic and imaging amenities. Keeping the international standard in mind, these topmost Indian hospitals make certain to provide the patients with all kinds of medical services possible.

Coming to the Colon Cancer surgeons, they are internationally-trained, highly-experienced, have years of expertise in their field and are associated with many top-rated hospitals of India known for providing the best Colon Cancer Treatment. All in all, undergoing Colon Cancer Treatment in India will allow you to experience the best healthcare services and that too, at extremely affordable rates.

The average cost of Colon Cancer Treatment in India is $2,700 to $4,600. However, one crucial thing to keep in mind regarding the treatment’s cost is that it hugely depends on several factors such as –

• Patient’s medical condition

• Type of surgery

• Hospital brand

• Type of room

• Expertise of the surgeon

The top Oncologists and Colon Cancer Doctors in India are –

• Dr.AmitAgarwal

• Dr.Vinod Raina

• Dr. Ashok Vaid

• Dr. Surendra Kumar Dabas

1. Surgery: In this, the tumor is removed along with healthy tissues in the proximity of the cells. It is one of the most common treatment plans for colon cancer. Portions of the rectum or colon and some surrounding lymph nodes will be removed. 

• Laparoscopic surgery- In this, several scopes for viewing are passed in the abdomen while the patient is under anesthesia. The incisions made are smaller and the recovery time is lesser than a traditional colon surgery. 
• Colostomy for rectal cancer- It is rare that a person with rectal cancer needs a colostomy. It is a stoma or an opening, which is connected to the surface of the abdomen that creates a pathway for the expulsion of food from the body.  The waste is collected in a special bag or pouch that the patient has to wear. 
• Radiofrequency ablation (RFA): It is also called cryoablation. Some patients may require surgery for their lungs or their livers to get rid of the metastatic tumors. In this, radio frequencies (RFA) are used to give heat to the tumors or to freeze them (cryoblation). However, not all lung and liver cancers can be treated with these. RFA is done during surgery or can be done through the skin. It can help in preserving the parts of the lungs and the liver, but some amount of tumors may be left behind. 

2. Radiation therapy: It is given after or before surgery and commonly with chemotherapy (chemoradiation). It is given for a minimum of 5 days a week over a period of a few weeks, but the length of the treatment depends upon the stage and type of tumor. It can sometimes relieve symptoms like pain, problems in eating or bleeding. 

• External-beam radiation therapy- High-energy particles or rays target the tumor through a machine that is placed outside the body. It is the most common kind of radiation therapy done for cancer treatment. The beams are given from outside the body, and affect the cancer region but may affect some healthy tissues as well.
• Stereotactic Radiosurgery (SRS): Large doses of radiation are given to the relatively smaller region of the cancer cells, usually in one session. There is no cutting involved and hence, it is not called surgery. Once the location of the tumor in the brain is determined, radiation beams target the tumor region from various angles (less damage to the nearby healthy cells).
• Intraoperative radiation therapy- In this, a single high dose of radiation is given during the surgery. 
• Brachytherapy- In this, radioactive seeds, capsules, or ribbons are placed inside or placed near the tumor in the patient’s body. This procedure only treats a particular area of the body. It consists of low-dose-rate (LDR), high-dose-rate (HDR), or permanent implants. 
• Radiation therapy for rectal cancer- In this, radiation is given before the surgery to shrink it for easier removal (neoadjuvant therapy), or it may also be used after the surgery to destroy the remaining cells. 

3. Chemotherapy: The drugs and medicines in this therapy are given to the patient intravenously or through the mouth. These travel through the bloodstream to tumor areas and destroy the cancer cells. 

• Neoadjuvant treatment- For some stages of stomach cancer, it is a standard option. This is given before the surgery. This treatment can shrink the tumor and hence, it becomes easier to operate. 
• Adjuvant treatment- It is usually given after surgery. This is extremely useful in cases where surgery is unable to remove all the cancer cells. The goal of this is to ensure that there are no cancer cells left that are extremely small to see. 

4. Targeted Drug Therapy:  Sometimes the standard chemotherapy treatment does not work. Cancer cells have particular mutations leading to overaccumulation of these. The mutations can be targeted with specific drugs that stop their growth. The side effects are variable from that of chemotherapy. 

5. Immunotherapy: This therapy stimulates a person’s immune system to look for cancer cells and kill them effectively. There are various checkpoint proteins present in the immune cells that behave like switches that are switched off or on for an immune response (for beginning or ending it). An important property of the immune system is not to kill its own cells, but rather foreign cells and tumors. Cancer cells might use these checkpoints to hide from the immune cells. Immunotherapy uses drugs that target these checkpoints.

The size and extent of the tumor are measured by the TNM system:

Tumor (T): It describes the size of the tumor that has formed 

Node (N): It describes if the tumor has spread to the nearby lymph nodes

Metastasis (M): it describes if cancer has spread to distant organs

• Stage 0: The cancer is in the earliest stage and is known as carcinoma in situ or intramucosal carcinoma (Tis). It has not spread beyond the mucosa or rectum (Tis, N0, M0), and it is typically removed by polypectomy (removal of a polyp).
• Stage 1: Cancer has grown in the muscularis and submucosal layers. It may also have grown into muscularis propria. It has not spread to nearby lymph nodes (T1 or 2, N0, M0). The tumor and the lymph nodes can be removed surgically. 
• Stage 2: Cancer has extended through the thick muscle layer on the outside of the colon, and has not spread to the surrounding lymph nodes. Chemotherapy or radiation therapy are usually given in combination either after or before surgery. 
  • IIA- Cancer has extended into the outermost layers of the rectum or colon but has not spread into them or the distant organs. It has not spread to the surrounding lymph nodes (T3, N0, M0).
  • IIB- It has spread through the rectal or colon wall but has not reached other organs or tissues. It has not affected the nearby lymph nodes (T4a, N0, M0). 
  • IIC- The cancer has grown through the rectal or colon wall and has grown into the other organs and tissues, or is attached to them. It has not spread to surrounding lymph nodes or distant areas (T4b, N0, M0).
• Stage 3: Cancer has extended beyond the colon to one or more surrounding lymph nodes. 
  • IIIA- Cancer has spread to the submucosa and mucosa, and it may have spread to the muscularis propria layer. It has extended to 1 to 3 surrounding lymph nodes or in the fat layer near the lymph nodes but not in the nodes. There is no evidence of it spreading to distant sites (T1 or T2, N1/N1c, M0). Chemotherapy or radiation therapy is usually given in combination either after or before surgery, along with adjuvant chemotherapy.  
  • IIB- Cancer has extended to the submucosa through the mucosa. It has spread to 4 to 6 surrounding lymph nodes but not to distant areas (T1, N2a, M0). Cancer has spread into the muscularis layers or into the muscularis propria layer. It has extended to 4 to 6 surrounding lymph nodes and has not spread to distant areas (T2 or T3, N2a, M0). Cancer has extended into the submucosal layer through the mucosal layer, and it may have also spread to the muscularis propria layer. It has extended to 7 or more surrounding lymph nodes but not to distant sites (T1 or T2, N2b, M0).
  • IIIC- The cancer has extended through the rectal or colon (visceral peritoneum is included) but has not spread to surrounding organs. It has extended to 4 to 6 surrounding lymph nodes but not to distant organs (T4a, N2a, M0). The cancer has extended to the outermost layers of the rectum or colon wall but has not affected surrounding organs. It has spread to 7 or more surrounding lymph nodes but not distant organs (T3 or T4a, N2b, M0). The cancer has spread through the wall of the rectum and colon and has attached to or has spread to surrounding organs and tissues. It has spread to at least 1 surrounding lymph node or into fat layer areas near the lymph nodes but not to distant organs (T4b, N1 or N2, M0).
• Stage 4: Colon cancer has spread to other organs like lungs or liver, and may also be present in lymph nodes. The treatment plan can include a combination of targeted therapy, radiation therapy, chemotherapy, and immunotherapy that can slow the spread of cancer and help in shrinking it.
  • IVA- The cancer may not have extended to the rectal or colon wall. It may have not extended to surrounding lymph nodes. It has spread to one distant organ or distant set of lymph nodes but not far off parts of the peritoneum (abdominal lining) (Any T, Any N, M1a).
  • IVB- The cancer may not have extended to the rectal or colon wall. It may have not extended to surrounding lymph nodes. It has spread to atleast one of the distant organs but has not spread to the parts peritoneum (Any T, Any N, M1b).
  • IVC- The cancer may not have extended to the rectal or colon wall. It may have not extended to surrounding lymph nodes. It has spread to atleast one of the distant organs but has not spread to the parts peritoneum. It may not or may have spread to far-off lymph nodes or organs (Any T, Any N, M1c). 

Recurrence: A state of remission is when cancer is no longer detected in the body and there are no symptoms present. This can also be called NED or no evidence of disease. It can be permanent or temporary. 

• If the cancer returns after the primary treatment, then it is known as recurrent cancer. It can come back in the same area (local), another region (distant, or surrounding the previous cancer area (regional). If recurrence occurs, the tests will be done again to evaluate the new tumor formed.
• A treatment plan is created after this testing, which includes radiation therapy, surgery, immunotherapy, chemotherapy, etc. Usually, the treatment plan for colon cancer is similar to that of metastatic cancer.

• Colonoscopy: This procedure aids the doctor to view inside the colon and the rectum of the patient under sedation. If the cancer is found, a complete diagnosis is carried out to find out the location, size, and spread of the cancer. 
• Biopsy: It is the removal of a small amount of the affected area is examined under a microscope. Other tests can suggest if the cancer is present, but a biopsy can confirm the presence of colorectal cancer. It may be done during a colonoscopy or on any tissue that is excised during the surgery. In a needle biopsy, the tissues are removed with a needle that goes into the tumor through the skin.
• Biomarker testing: The doctor may prescribe some laboratory examinations that identify specific proteins, genes, and other factors that are found only in the tumors. This is known as the molecular testing on the cells of the tumor. All colorectal cancers are tested for problems in mismatched repair proteins (dMMR). This can be done from the specially stained biopsy samples or by looking for changes called microsatellite instability (MSI). This can also be considered for patients who can undergo immunotherapy. If a patient has recurrent or metastatic colorectal cancer, a tissue sample is preferred for testing from that area. 
• Blood tests: Patients with this disease may become anemic as colorectal cancer often bleeds into the rectum or large intestine. A test for the number of red blood cells (CBC) can indicate if bleeding has occurred. Another blood test called the CEA or carcinoembryonic antigen can detect the levels of this protein. If it is present in high quantities, the cancer has spread to other body parts. However, it may not be used as a routine test for colorectal cancer but may be used for monitoring it. 
• Computed tomography (CT Scan): In this, pictures of the tumor are taken from different angles. All of these images are combined together to form a comprehensive 3D image. It shows the size of the tumor. A special dye called a contrast medium is given to the patient’s vein, as liquid, or as a pill to get a clearer image. It can also check if the cancer has spread to the liver, lungs, or other organs. 
• Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI): In this, strong magnets are used instead of X-rays to get a clear picture of the soft tissues in the body. A special dye called a contrast medium is given to the patient’s vein, as liquid, or as a pill to get a clearer image. It can measure the tumor size. 
• Ultrasound: In this, sound waves are used to create images of the internal organs to check how deep cancer has spread. However, this test is unable to clearly detect the spread of cancer to the surrounding lymph nodes. 
• Chest X-ray: In this, X-rays or radiation is used to create images of the internal organs in the patient. A chest X-ray is useful in checking the spread of cancer in the lungs (if the cancer has metastasized to the lungs from other organs). 
• Positron emission tomography (PET Scan): It is generally given in combination with CT Scan. A radioactive sugar is injected into the patient so that it accumulates in the cancer cells as they are actively dividing. The radiation in the sugar is low and cannot cause further damage. A scanner is present for detecting the sugar and forms images of the tumor. 

NOTE: After all the diagnostic tests have been done, the doctor will confirm if the cancer is present or not. If present, the staging (description) of the cancer is done

If a person has been diagnosed with colorectal cancer, the doctor may suggest surgery which generally offers the best chance of treatment. However, chemotherapy and radiation therapy can be used before or after surgery to shrink the tumor for easier retrieval and/or destroy the remaining cells.