Kathmandu
Cancer Center
Kathmandu
Cancer Center
Most families choose Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Hospital, Apollo or Medanta without ever comparing what is actually available in Kathmandu with what they are travelling to Delhi to find. For the majority of cancers Nepali families travel to India to treat — the comparison may genuinely surprise you.
Someone you love has been diagnosed with cancer. In the hours and days that follow, a decision gets made — often without being spoken aloud: "We should go to India." A relative mentioned Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute. A friend said Apollo is better. Someone heard AIIMS takes serious cases. It feels like the responsible, loving choice.
We understand this completely. When someone you love has cancer, you do not take chances. You look for the best. That instinct is exactly right.
But here is the question nobody asks out loud: Have you actually compared — equipment by equipment, doctor by doctor, procedure by procedure — what is available in Kathmandu with what is in Delhi?
Most families have not. Not because they are careless. Because no one has ever shown them both sides, honestly, side by side. That is what this page does. We will not hide our limitations — and we have some. But we will show you what we have. And for the majority of cancers that Nepali families travel to India to treat, you may find the journey is not necessary.
The decision to go to Delhi is almost never purely medical. Understanding what is really driving it is the first step to making it rationally.
Families are not asking "what gives the best clinical outcome?" They are asking "what decision can I defend later, if something goes wrong?" Going to India is a defensive social move — not a medical one. If you stay in Nepal and the outcome is difficult, relatives may ask: "why didn't you take her to India?" That anticipated guilt drives the decision before any medical comparison is ever made.
High-income Nepali families have been told since childhood that serious treatment happens in India. Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute. AIIMS. Apollo. These names carry enormous weight — not because anyone compared them to KCC, but because they are famous and familiar. This is not a conclusion families reached — it is a belief they absorbed. Inherited beliefs do not change easily with facts alone. They change when trusted peers model a different choice. Which is exactly why patient stories matter more than any equipment list.
The relative who says "you are not doing enough for him" is the most powerful force in this entire decision. It weaponises love. Going to India signals effort, sacrifice, devotion. Staying in Nepal is made to look like resignation. This social pressure is real and we acknowledge it completely. That is why this page exists — to give families the information and the language to explain, confidently, why they made the choice they did.
Patients believe that because Delhi is larger and more famous, more complex things must happen there — bigger machines, more professors, better protocols. The reality — that KCC operates the same LINAC generation, follows the same treatment protocols, and has doctors from the same training institutes — is simply invisible. Not because it is hidden. Because no one has ever shown it directly. Until now.
We invite this comparison because we are confident in what we offer. Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute (RGCI) is a dedicated cancer centre — a fair benchmark because KCC is too. This comparison applies to the cancers Nepali families most commonly travel to RGCI, Apollo, or Medanta to treat: breast, rectal, head & neck, and gynaecologic.
| What matters in cancer care | KCC, Kathmandu | RGCI / Apollo / Medanta, Delhi |
|---|---|---|
| Linear Accelerator (LINAC) for radiotherapy | ✓ Same generation technology | ✓ |
| IMRT / VMAT precision radiotherapy | ✓ Fully operational | ✓ |
| Brachytherapy (internal radiotherapy) | ✓ Asia's leading centre — published internationally | ✓ |
| Radiation oncologist trained at AIIMS / PGI | ✓ | ✓ |
| Breast cancer surgery (oncoplastic) | ✓ | ✓ |
| Rectal / colorectal cancer surgery incl. HIPEC | ✓ HIPEC available — rare in Nepal | ✓ |
| Head & neck cancer treatment | ✓ | ✓ |
| Cervical & gynaecologic cancer | ✓ Brachytherapy — international publications | ✓ |
| Chemotherapy & immunotherapy | ✓ | ✓ |
| Multidisciplinary tumour board review | ✓ | Partial Selected cases |
| International oncology research publications | ✓ 85+ peer-reviewed publications | ✓ |
| Consultation in Nepali language | ✓ | ✗ |
| Family present at every session | ✓ 25 min from Ring Road, Kathmandu | ✗ Patient typically alone in Delhi |
| Overall treatment cost | Significantly lower | High + travel + stay |
| Additional cost above hospital bill | None | NPR 4–10 lakh estimated |
| Travel stress during treatment | None | Significant — flights, unfamiliar city |
| Nepal health insurance / SSF, Provident fund coordination | ✓ | ✗ Not accepted abroad |
This comparison applies to standard oncology procedures. For very rare or ultra-specialised cases, we will always say honestly if referral is the right path. Request a free second opinion →
In Delhi, your mother recovers in a rented room with an unfamiliar caretaker. In Kathmandu, you can be beside her after every session, every result, every moment that matters.
Oncology research consistently shows that patients with strong family support have better treatment adherence, lower anxiety, and stronger recovery. This is not a soft benefit. It affects outcomes.
A patient who cannot fully follow what her doctor is explaining cannot fully participate in her own care. At KCC, there is no language barrier. Everything is in Nepali.
Choosing KCC is not settling. It is choosing equal clinical care, the full support of your family, and a team that sees her as a person. That is not less. That is everything.
Patients reach Kathmandu Cancer Center from across Nepal. Many travel from Pokhara, Birgunj, Butwal, Hetauda, and Biratnagar — by road or short flight — as well as Dharan, Nepalgunj, and Surkhet. For many families, coming to Kathmandu is no more difficult than traveling to the nearby Indian city for treatment. The difference is that treatment is available here in Nepal. Your family can stay close, and most patients are able to return home between treatment sessions.
Many Nepali families based in Singapore, Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia choose to return home for cancer treatment at KCC. Treatment costs are 60–80% lower than private hospitals abroad, protocols are identical (NCCN/ESMO guidelines), and your family is with you — not thousands of miles away.
Our team can review your reports via WhatsApp before you travel, confirm a treatment plan, and have everything ready for your arrival. Most patients are seen within 24–48 hours of landing.
Travelling from abroad? Send your reports on WhatsApp today. We'll confirm your treatment plan before you book your flight — no surprises on arrival.
Most families calculate the hospital bill. Very few calculate the real total — the complete cost of being in Delhi for 6–8 weeks as a Kathmandu family. This is an honest estimate.
We are not saying India is wrong for every case. We are saying: calculate the complete number first. Then request a free estimate from KCC and compare.
Our team did not settle for Nepal. They chose it — specifically, deliberately — because they believed Nepal deserved what did not yet exist here.
"I trained in New Delhi and completed my fellowship at Rajiv Gandhi Cancer Institute.
I understand how cancer care is delivered in leading centers there,
and I also know what we provide here in Kathmandu.
For cancers such as breast cancer, rectal cancer, and head & neck cancer,
the treatment principles are the same. The important difference is that
patients can receive high-quality care here in Nepal, close to their family."
“When patients ask whether they should travel abroad for treatment,
I explain that for many head and neck cancers — including cancers of
the mouth, throat, and thyroid — the treatment principles are the same.
With experienced surgeons and a multidisciplinary team,
patients can achieve excellent outcomes here in Nepal,
while staying close to their family.”
Real decisions made by real Kathmandu families. Each had already considered India. Each compared. Each stayed.
I am a doctor myself. I still had the same conditioning as everyone else. When my father was diagnosed I did a proper comparison: equipment, training, tumour board process. KCC was comparable on every clinical measure. What decided it: he could sleep in his own bed every night. For an elderly man on radiotherapy, that matters more than the name on the gate.
My husband was diagnosed with rectal cancer. We had already contacted Medanta — our daughter studies in Delhi so it seemed the natural choice. A doctor friend said: see KCC first. I was skeptical. But the treatment plan was identical. We stayed. He is cancer-free 14 months on. And I was home every evening.
When I got the breast cancer diagnosis, my first thought was Apollo Delhi. My brother lives there — it seemed obvious. My husband said: let us see what is here first. When I saw the machine, when the doctor explained the surgery — exactly what Apollo had proposed — I understood. My children were with me every day of treatment. That is not nothing. That is everything.
One fear about choosing a local centre is not knowing the process. Here it is — clearly, step by step.
Send your reports, scans, or just describe the situation. A clinical team member responds within hours — not a call centre.
Your case is reviewed by the relevant specialist. Within 24–48 hours you receive a clear recommendation — including if we think another centre is right.
Complex cases go to our multidisciplinary board — surgical, radiation, and medical oncology together — one unified plan.
No unnecessary delay. Timing matters in cancer. Our scheduling is built around clinical urgency.
परिवारमा कसैलाई क्यान्सर भएको थाहा पाउँदा पहिलो विचार आउँछ — "भारत लैजानुपर्यो।" राजीव गान्धी क्यान्सर अस्पताल, अपोलो, वा मेडान्टाको नाम आउँछ। यो प्रेमपूर्ण निर्णय हो — तर के कहिल्यै तुलना गर्नुभएको छ?
नेपालमै काठमाडौं क्यान्सर सेन्टर (KCC) मा उही पुस्ताको रेषियोथेरापी LINAC मेसिन छ जुन दिल्लीका अस्पतालमा छ। हाम्रा डाक्टरहरू AIIMS, PGI चण्डीगढ, राजीव गान्धी क्यान्सर अस्पताल, र टाटा मेमोरियल अस्पतालहरुमा मा अध्ययन गर्नुभइको छ, तालिम लिनुभएको छ। स्तन क्यान्सर, पाठेघरको क्यान्सर, घाँटीको क्यान्सर, फोक्सो , रगतको क्यान्सर — यी सबैको उपचार यहीँ नेपालमा सम्भव छ।
भारत जाँदा अस्पतालको बिल बाहेक थप रु. ४–१० लाख विमान भाडा, होटल, खाना आदिमा खर्च हुन्छ। र सबभन्दा महत्त्वपूर्ण कुरा: उपचारका हरेक दिन परिवार नजिक रहन पाउनुहुन्छ।
Send us your reports. Tell us your situation. Our oncology team will respond with a clear, honest assessment — and if we believe another centre is the right answer for your case, we will tell you that too.
If your case requires India, we will tell you. That is a promise.
