Meet Vishal Rao, an oncologist who tries to prevent tobacco addiction

Growing up in a family of doctors in Mangaluru, Dr Vishal Rao was taught to have a value-based approach to medicine. And training at Mumbai’s Tata Memorial Hospital gave his ambition of pursuing oncology a sense of social purpose. But only after coming to Bengaluru eight years ago and volunteering in medical camps in villages and slums did he understand that most cases of cancer are related to tobacco and can be prevented.

The 38-year-old head and neck surgeon says, "The medical sector has made health synonymous to disease. As a doctor, should I feel happy that there are more cancer cases for me to treat or should I do something to prevent it altogether?” Rao’s choice was clear: He decided to go beyond the call of duty to work with government, civil society and corporate organisations to create awareness about cancer and tobacco.

Amidst his day job as surgeon and oncologist at HCG, Rao is a member of the high power committee for tobacco control, Government of Karnataka, and works with the World Health Organization ( WHO) to ensure that interventions in their Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) are implemented effectively.

Tobacco can cause up to 18 different kinds of cancer and almost half the cancer cases in India are due to tobacco, Rao, who calls himself a pro-health campaigner and not an anti-tobacco activist, says.

Rao, who has also worked with Don Bosco Centres for the rehabilitation of marginalised children, helps NGOs in counselling and rehabilitating children from addictions. These sessions are usually held at the Bal Bhavan in Cubbon Park. He has reached out to more than around twenty colleges as well.

Dr KS Ravindranath, vice-chancellor of the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, said that although Rao's initiatives go against his daily bread and butter, his belief that prevention is better than treatment keeps him going.

"He is constantly engaged in bringing all stakeholders like government, universities and NGOs together to create meaningful solutions," he said.