M. Krishnan Nair (doctor)

M. Krishnan Nair (doctor) is a leading oncologist working in India. He is the founding director of the Regional Cancer Center (RCC) at Trivandrum, a director of the S.U.T. Institute of Oncology in Thiruvananthapuram(Trivandrum) and a professor at the Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences & Research in Kochi. He received the "Padma Shri" award from the President of India.

Education

Nair earned his MBBS degree from University of Kerala, India in 1963, then went on to earn a MD (Radiotherapy and Clinical Oncology) from the University of Punjab in 1968. In 1972, he earned a FRCR (Clinical Oncology) from the Royal College of Radiologists in London.

Work in India

As founding director of RCC, he was responsible for establishing one of the largest comprehensive cancer centres in India and for initiating programmes in Community Oncology, Pain and Palliative Care, and Paediatric Oncology for the first time in India. He was a member of the expert group that drew up the National Cancer Control Plan of India. He served the World Health Organization (WHO) for more than a decade in their Expert Advisory Panel on Cancer. Currently, he is the only member from India on the Advisory Committee of the Director General, WHO and Cancer Technical Group (CTG) of WHO.

He introduced for the first time an institution oriented and extremely inexpensive Cancer Insurance plan in India called Cancer Care for Life. He established five district-level peripheral centres for prevention and early detection and a pain relief and palliative care network with Morphine availability for terminal cancer patients.

He implemented a 10-Year Action Plan in Kerala which reduced tobacco consumption, improved early detection, enhanced therapy facilities, and provided palliative care and pain relief to substantial sections of dying cancer patients. This programme finds mention in IARC ("Managerial Guidelines for NCCP" (2002), "World Cancer Report" (2003)), and WHO documents.

He has assisted the World Health Organization as Consultant in several major workshops and meetings such as design modification of teletherapy machines 1992, preparation of managerial guidelines for cancer control 1994 and 2000, preparation of pain and palliative care guidelines 1994, the Cancer Technical Group meeting 2005, and the Cancer Advisory Group meeting 2005. He has served as the Director of the World Health Organization Collaborating Centre (No.130) since it was established until his retirement in November 2003. He has served as the Short-term Consultant in IARC three times and is a visiting scholar in Allegheny General Hospital, Stanford University, and University of Southern California.

Nationally, he has served as President, Association of Radiation Oncologists of India, Member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the Indian Council of Medical Research, and Member of the Board of Radiation and Isotope Technology of the Department of Atomic Energy of India. He has done an exhaustive study on human health effects of background radiation in coastal areas of Kerala.

Nair has also published more than 300 papers in the field of medicine.

Illegal drug trials controversy

Between November 1999 and February 2000, while Dr. M. Krishnan Nair was serving as the director, the RCC in association with the Johns Hopkins University conducted a series of drug trials on 26 patients. These trials were later found to be illegal, in violation of norms and without the full informed consent of the patients. Both the RCC and Johns Hopkins University later admitted to this after the government conducted enquiries. However, no action was taken against the erring officials including Dr. Krishnan Nair.

Positions held

*1965-68 Lecturer, Medical College, Trivandrum, Kerala, India
*1969-1971 Assistant Professor, Medical Colleges, Kottayam / Trivandrum, Kerala, India
*1971-1973 Associate Professor, Medical College, Trivandrum, Kerala, India
*1975-1981 Professor of Clinical Oncology and Radiotherapy Medical College, Trivandrum, Kerala, India
*1981-2003 Director, Regional Cancer Centre, Trivandrum, Kerala, India
*1 February 2004-to date Professor of Clinical Oncology, Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Kochi, Kerala, India
*February 2004-to date Director and Consultant Clinical Oncologist, SUT Institute of Oncology, Trivandrum, Kerala, India.

Honors and awards

*Member, Expert Panel on Cancer of the World Health Organization (WHO)
*President, Association of Radiation Oncologists of India 1984-1986
*Member, Governing Body, Regional Cancer Centre, Guwahati, Assam, Calcutta, and Bangalore
*Member, National Cancer Control Programme Core Committee, 1981-1985
*Fellow of the Indian College of Radiology (FICR)
*Founder Fellow of the Indian Medical Science Academy (FIMSA)
*Pasupathy Nath Wahi Cancer Award 1988
*Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) Sandoz Oration Award in Cancer Research 1989
*Vimala Shah Award of the Banaras Hindu University 1991
*PK Haldar Memorial Oration of association of Radiation Oncologists of India
*Bhishmacharya Award of outstanding contribution in the field of Medicine, 1993
*Leadership Award by Trivandrum Management Association 1994
*Dorab Tata Oration Award (1996) by Indian Society of Oncology
*Roll of Honour (1996) by International Union Against Cancer (UICC), Geneva
*Dr.L.H.Lobo Memorial Oration 1997 by Dr.L.H.Lobo Memorial Trust, Ludhiana
*Padma Shri Award by Government of India in 2001

External links

* [http://www.hinduonnet.com/2001/07/29/stories/0229000n.htm The Hindu: Were banned drugs used on patients?]
* [http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl1824/18241140.htm Frontline: The truth of the 'drug' trials]
* [http://www.ndtv.com/template/template.asp?template=health&id=15267&callid=1 NDTV: Thiruvananthapuram RCC admits to illegal drug trials]