Pritvhi Sharma, a six-year-old cancer patient with a malignant tumour on his neck, sits on a pavement outside the Tata Memorial Hospital in Mumbai.—Reuters Photo

MUMBAI: A study conducted over cancer deaths  in India reveals that area a person lives in, his/her socio-economic conditions, education and religious orientation contribute to the outcome of the disease, according to a news report in Times of India.

The report called Million Death Study (MDS) was first published in Lancet Medical Journal clearly signifies that a youngster living in north-eastern side of India is more susceptible to cancer than a youngster residing in Bihar, whereas Muslim women are more prone to succumb to cervical cancer than Hindu women.

Moreover, the study also states that an Indian living in the rural side of India is less likely to encounter cancer however once afflicted with the disease is more likely to die of the cause.

According to the report in Times of India, Literacy rate also influences the chances of encountering cancerous ailments. MDS states that uneducated Indians are twice more vulnerable to succumb to cancer than educate Indians.

MDS also states that tobacco consumption remains one of the single biggest causes which is found common in deaths due to cancer.

According to the report almost six lakh people die from cancer in India annually.