Bengaluru, July 09, 2026: Pfizer announced that Project AASTHA, its flagship Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative implemented in partnership with Doctors for You (DFY), has crossed the milestone of supporting more than 10 lakh patients and caregivers across India since its launch in 2022.
The programme focuses on improving healthcare access for people living with cancer and rare diseases by helping them navigate the healthcare system, access government welfare schemes, receive counselling, and connect with support services throughout their care journey.
The milestone was marked at AASTHA CareConnect 2026 in Bengaluru, which brought together senior government officials, healthcare leaders, policymakers, clinicians, patient advocates, and development partners to deliberate on strengthening patient navigation and ensuring equitable access to care.
With India witnessing a growing burden of cancer and rare diseases, Project AASTHA was designed to address the non-clinical challenges patients often face, including understanding treatment pathways, hospital procedures, and applying for financial assistance.
Over the past four years, the initiative has supported more than 10 lakh patients and caregivers, including 9.25 lakh people living with cancer and 75,000 people living with rare diseases. It has established a network of 15 Cancer Centres of Excellence and five Rare Disease Centres of Excellence, secured financial assistance for over 29,000 beneficiaries, enabled treatment support for more than 33,000 patients, and provided specialised support to nearly 8,000 children, including those living with genetic and rare diseases.
In Karnataka, the programme has supported over 59,000 patients through its navigation services, facilitated more than 38,000 applications for government healthcare funding, and enabled treatment support for over 33,000 patients across the state.
Meenakshi Nevatia, Country President, Pfizer India, said, "Project AASTHA is a testament to how timely guidance, counselling and non-medical support can help patients and caregivers navigate a complex treatment journey with confidence and dignity, and I am grateful that we have been able to support more than 10 lakh patients and caregivers in need. We, with our partners Doctors for You, are strengthening our joint commitment to making many more patients get access to early diagnosis and simplified treatment pathways. As we mark over four years of meaningful impact, we are excited to build on our learnings, prioritize the voice of the patient and continue improving access to care across the country."
Dr. Rajat Jain, President, Doctors for You, said, "We are honoured to hold the AASTHA CareConnect 2026 Forum with Pfizer to celebrate the progress made through Project AASTHA and to collectively shape the next phase of patient navigation in India. Patients and families often need support beyond clinical care, from understanding hospital processes and accessing government schemes to receiving emotional reassurance during treatment. Our discussions centred around innovative strategies to improve continuity of care, and effective utilization of government health and social welfare schemes. We are excited to further scale and strengthen helpdesk-led models to reach more patients."
At AASTHA CareConnect 2026, Pfizer and Doctors for You reaffirmed their shared commitment to building an accessible, equitable, and patient-centric healthcare ecosystem while strengthening their partnership to improve health outcomes across India.
-900x650-(July-31).png)
x
.png)
