The government on Wednesday assured the Lok Sabha that it was taking all steps for early detection and treatment of cancer and was sanctioning funds for this purpose.

Replying to a spate of supplementaries in the House during Question Hour, Minister for Health and Family Welfare Anbumani Ramadoss said there were about four lakh deaths in the country annually due to cancer. Also, some 2 to 2.5 million cases were reported every year.

To a query by a member whether the government proposed to ban gutka, which was one of the main causes of cancer besides tobacco, the minister said, "If I get request from any state government to ban gutka, I will consider."

He said since tobacco was one of the major causes of cancer, the central government had enacted a legislation to discourage use of all tobacco products.

However, the tobacco industry has not supported cancer programmes, he said in reply to a query by BJP member Maneka Gandhi whether tobacco companies were ready to set up cancer hospitals.

To another question, the minister said cervical and breast cancer were the most common forms of the disease among women in India.