'Prevention is better than cure', is something that is preached by one and all, but practiced by a few. A greater awareness of one's health status aided by preventive health check-ups is the best solution rather than reactive healthcare. To this end, popular actor Suriya inaugurated the first ever Apollo Personalized Health Check at Apollo Ayanambakkam in Chennai today.

Having pioneered preventive health checks in India - three decades and 8.5 million checks later - Apollo Hospitals has decided to take health checks to the next level. With this inaugural ceremony, Apollo is now also the pioneer of Personalized Health Checks (PHCs) in India.
The new health check process will involve a pre-test assessment of an individual's health by a health assessment consultant, based on which a package of tests is designed to cater to the specific needs of the customer.

This will be followed by taking samples from the customer and preparation of a detailed report, which in turn will lead to a personalized, consultation by a physician for that individual. Thus, while there will be a core set of tests that are applicable to the particular customer type - based on age and gender, there will also be an additional set of tests unique to the individual as prescribed by the health assessment consultant.

"In the panoramic landscape of the country's healthcare needs, there is an ever-widening gap of supply vs. demand of hospital beds. The only way to try and bridge this gap is by preventing disease rather than treating it. Personalized health checks will ensure that the customer gets the most accurate and effective diagnosis that is best suited to his unique needs and in due course, prevent that individual from contracting a disease," said Dr. Prathap C Reddy, Chairman, Apollo Hospitals Group on the occasion.

The personalized health checks will result in the best possible medical outcomes for the individual as opposed to a 'one size fits all' master health check. The current process of health checks is more standardized rather than being personalized to a person's unique needs. By the year 2025, a five-fold increase in cancer rates is predicted - 1.5 million new cases will be added every year. Around 80 million people will be affected by diabetes and 60 million people with heart disease.

Non-communicable and lifestyle-related diseases are on the rise and will be the cause for 75% of all mortality by the year 2020. Unfortunately, the diseases are contracted long before the patient displays any symptoms. The 3 crucial steps to handling such diseases are prevention, detection and management.