Dr Anupa Pillai completed MBBS at the prestigious Amrita Institute of Medical Sciences Kochi .Under the guidance of stalwarts like Prof Dr RN Sharma and Prof.Dr GG Rao , Her post graduation (MD in Geriatric Medicine) was at the renown MGM Medical College ,Navi Mumbai .Dr TK Biswas (Prof and HOD Geriatric Medicine) imparted skills for tackling the health issues of older adults. She was a part of joint clinics for the holistic care of older adults .She has done extensive work in COVID wards and ICU during the pandemic. As senior resident and a fellow in geriatric oncology at the Geriatric Oncology Clinic under the guidance of Dr Vanita Noronha and Dr Kumar Prabhash, she have worked extensively with the care of older cancer patients who have unique demographics and specific issues. Her roles included conducting comprehensive assessments for elderly cancer patients, considering their unique physiological, psychological, and social factors. She participated in the development and implementation of personalized treatment plans tailored to the specific needs and preferences of geriatric oncology patients. Her passion is managing the complexities of cancer treatment in older adults, including addressing comorbidities, polypharmacy, and functional decline, cognition. She had collaboration with oncologists, other geriatricians, nurses, and allied health professionals to optimize the care continuum for geriatric oncology patients. Engaging in research activities related to geriatric oncology, including clinical trials and quality improvement initiatives. Organizing workshops, activities, and propose research to promote professional development. Conducting support groups to foster emotional well-being among older patients. She was the first Consultant Geriatrician in Tata Memorial Hospital Mumbai. She has multiple publications in peer reviewed journals.
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Special interest
Onco Geriatrics
Dementia
Geriatric Syndromes
Sarcopenia
Fall Prevention
Orthogeriatrics
Community Geriatrics
Perioperative care of older adults
Preventive Geriatrics and Longevity Medicine
Memberships
Member, Indian Academy of Geriatrics
Member, British Geriatric Society
Registered Practitioner, Maharashtra Medical Council
Member SIOG (International Society of Geriatric Oncology)
Member, Geriatric Society of India
Member, Asian Geriatric Oncology Society
Member IAG Kerela
Member IAG Delhi NCR
Awards & Achievements
First Consultant Geriatrician in Tata Memorial Hospital
Certifications:
Fellow in Geriatric Oncology (Tata Memorial Hospital Mumbai)
Research & Publications
01
Peer Reviewer The Journal of Geriatric Oncology
02
Peer Reviewer CRST Resource person- Public Health Foundation of India course in Geriatrics
03
Book chapters: Co Author in Section of Geriatric Oncology in API update on Oncology 2023 Chapter in IAG Handbook of Geriatrics 2024 Perform multidimensional geriatric assessment that includes medical, psycho-social and functional components
04
CGA Approach to a Geriatric patient Co Author Principles and Practice of Geriatric Medicine 2026
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Co Author in AGOS Textbook of Geriatric Oncology 2026
06
Anupa Pillai, Shwet Sabnis, Tushar Kanti Biswas. A study of Community Acquired Pneumonia in the Elderly. IAIM, 2019; 6(12): 1-9.
07
Hemoglobin D-Punjab - Rare hemolytic anaemia in elderly- a Case Report MGM MGM Journal of Medical Sciences Tushar Kanti Biswas Anupa Pillai
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Letter to Editor -Making the seniors tech savvy – a way forward to bringing cancer care to the doorstep Cancer Research, Statistics and Treatment NNPrem, Anupa Pillai, Joyita Banerjee
09
Kumar S, Castelino R, Rao A, Pillai A et al. Performance of potentially inappropriate medications assessment tools in older Indian patients with cancer. Cancer Med. 2024;13:e6797. doi:10.1002/cam4.6797
10
R Shenoy ,Rao A,Vanita N,A Pillai at al Validation of the Onco-MPI in predicting short-term mortality in older Indian patients with cancer. Journal of Geriatric Oncology 14 (2023) 101550
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Sehgal A, Noronha V, Ramaswamy A, Kumar A, Pillai A, Rao A, et al. Potentially inappropriate medications, their adverse events, and impact on geriatric vulnerabilities, frailty, and survival in older Indian patients with cancer: A retrospective observational study. Cancer Res Stat Treat 2024;7:45 54.
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Vanita N,AR Rao,A Ramaswamy,A Pillai et al The current status of geriatric oncology in India ecancer 2023, 17:1595; www.ecancer.org; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3332/ecancer.2023.1595
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Rao AR, Noronha V, Ramaswamy A, Kumar A, Pillai A, Sehgal A, et al. Prevalence and factors associated with frailty among older Indian adults with cancer: A single-center cross-sectional analytical study from a geriatric oncology clinic in India. Cancer Res Stat Treat 2023;6:408-17
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Pathi N, Parikh PM, Banerjee J,Pillai A et al. Unmet Needs in Geriatric Oncology. South Asian J Cancer 2023;12 (2):221–227.
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Sabu TM, Noronha V, Rao AR, Gattani S, Ramaswamy A,Pillai A et al. Uptake of vaccination in older Indian patients with cancer: A cross sectional observational study. Cancer Res Stat Treat 2023;6:52-61.
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Sehgal A, Noronha V, Ramaswamy A, Kumar A, Pillai A, Rao A, et al. Pattern of analgesic prescriptions and pain related outcomes in older patients with cancer: A retrospective observational study. Cancer Res Stat Treat 2023;6:541-8.
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Vanita Noronha, Abhijith Rajaram Rao, Anupa Pillai, Anita Kumar, Senthil Rajappa, Akhil Kapoor, B.K. Mishra, Tarachand Gupta, Chirag Desai, Keechilat Pavithran, Alok Goel, Chakor Vora, Sharada Mailankody, Sachin Hingmire, Rajat Saha, Amit Kumar, T.P. Sahoo, Arun Chandrasekharan, Rushabh Kothari, Lalit Kumar, Anant Ramaswamy, Shripad Banavali, Kumar Prabhash,Prevalence and types of cancer in older Indians: A multicentric observational study across 17 institutions in India,Cancer Epidemiology,Volume 92,2024,102628
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Kumar S, Castelino R, Rao A,Pillai A et al. Performance of potentially inappropriate medications assessment tools in older Indian patients with cancer. Cancer Med. 2024; 13:e6797. doi:10.1002/cam4.6797
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Abhijith R. Rao, Vanita Noronha, Anant Ramaswamy, Anita Kumar, Anupa Pillai, Shreya Gattani, Arshiya Sehgal, Sharath Kumar, Renita Castelino, Jessica Pearce, Ratan Dhekale, Pravin Jagtap, Vinod Tripathi, Sunita Satamkar, Jyoti Krishnamurthy, Sarika Mahajan, Anuradha Daptardar, Lekhika Sonkusare, Jayita Deodhar, Nabila Ansari, Manjusha Vagal, Purabi Mahajan, Shivshankar Timmanpyati, Manjunath Nookala, Ankita Chitre, Akhil Kapoor, Vikram Gota, Shripad Banavali, Rajendra A. Badwe, Kumar Prabhash,Assessing frailty in older Indian patients before cancer treatment: Comparative analysis of three scales and their implications for overall survival,Journal of Geriatric Oncology,Volume 15, Issue 3,2024,101736
20
Rao AR, Noronha V, Ramaswamy A, Sekar A, Kumar A, Pillai A, Gattani S, Sehgal A, Kumar S, Castelino R, Dhekale R, Krishnamurthy J, Mahajan S, Daptardar A, Sonkusare L, Deodhar J, Ansari N, Vagal M, Mahajan P, Timmanpyati S, Nookala M, Chitre A, Kapoor A, Gota V, Banavali S, Badwe RA, Prabhash K. Predictive significance of inflammatory markers in the survival of older Indian patients with cancer: a single-center prospective analysis. Ecancermedicalscience. 2024 Aug 22;18:1746. doi: 10.3332/ecancer.2024.1746. PMID: 39421170; PMCID: PMC11484672.
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Vanita Noronha, Nandini Sharrel Menon, Minit Jalan Shah, Anupa Pillai, Anita Kumar, Abhijith Rajaram Rao, Akash Pawar, Ratan Dhekale, Kumar Prabhash Patient’s perception of cancer treatment outcomes in geriatric age groups: A retrospective analysis from a tertiary care centre in India.Journal of Clinical Oncology 2024 42:16_suppl, e13774-e13774
22
Noronha, V., Tongaonkar, A., Pillai, A. et al. Prevalence and impact of financial toxicity in older patients with cancer: a prospective observational study in India. Support Care Cancer 33, 416 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00520-025-09252-9
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Vanita Noronha, Jatin Choudhary, Anant Ramaswamy, Anupa Pillai, Abhijith Rajaram Rao, Anita Kumar, Ratan Dhekale, Sarika Mahajan, Anuradha Daptardar, Lekhika Sonkusare, Manjusha Vagal, Purabi Mahajan, Shivshankar Timmanpyati, Vikram Gota, Ankush Gorakh Shetake, Akash Pawar, Kumar Prabhash,Treatment goals, desire for disclosure, and perception of cancer treatment outcomes in older patients with cancer: An observational study from a tertiary care center in India,Journal of Geriatric Oncology,Volume 16, Issue 3,2025,102198,ISSN 1879-4068,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jgo.2025.102198
24
Vanita Noronha, Anupa Pillai, Kartik Mittal, Ankush Shetake, Anant Ramaswamy, Abhijith Rao, Anita Kumar, Bharat Pant, Ananya Singh, Ganesh Gosavi, Ratan Dhekale, Nikita Parab, Vinod Tripathi, Sunita Satamkar, Sarika Mahajan, Anuradha Daptardar, Nabila Ansari, Manjusha Vagal, Lekhika Sonkusare, Jayita Deodhar, Purabi Mahajan, Vikram Gota, Kumar Prabhash,Need and uptake of geriatric assessment-guided interventions in older Indian patients with cancer: A cross-sectional analytical study,Journal of Geriatric Oncology,Volume 16, Issue 7,2025,102331,ISSN 1879-4068,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jgo.2025.102331.
25
Rao, A. R., Noronha, V., Ramaswamy, A., Dhekle, R., Kumar, A., Pillai, A., Rane, P. P., Chakrabarty, N., Mahajan, A., & Prabhash, K. (2025). Imaging-based skeletal muscle quality and clinical outcomes in Indian older patients with cancer: A retrospective analysis. Journal of Cancer Research and Therapeutics, 21(3), 649–656. https://doi.org/10.4103/jcrt.jcrt_906_24
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Carolina Gómez-Moreno, Chiara Russo, Armida Parala-Metz, Bérengère Beauplet, Anupa Pillai, Anand Kumar, Domenico Fusco, Suzanne Festen, Siri Rostoft,Do we need geriatricians in geriatric oncology? A SIOG geriatricians position statement, Journal of Geriatric Oncology,Volume 17, Issue 2,2026,102831,ISSN 1879-4068,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jgo.2025.102831.
27
Noronha, V., Menon, N., Pillai, A. et al. Geriatric Oncology multidomain intervention study to prevent Cognitive impairment among older Indian patients with cancer receiving chemotherapy: a multicentric randomised controlled trial (GOCog). BMC Geriatr 26, 818 (2026). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12877-026-07513-8
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Anupa Pillai, Anant Ramaswamy, Abhijith Rajaram Rao, Anita Kumar, Kartik Mittal, Arshiya Sehgal, Ratan Dhekale, Akash Pawar, Ankush Shetake, Sarika Mahajan, Anuradha Daptardar, Lekhika Sonkusare, Jayita Deodhar, Nabila Ansari, Manjusha Vagal, Purabi Mahajan, Shivshankar Timmanpyati, Manjunath Nookala, Vikram Gota, Shripad D. Banavali, Kumar Prabhash, Vanita Noronha,Screening for poor muscle strength in older Indian patients with solid tumor using SARC-F questionnaire and handgrip,Journal of Geriatric Oncology,Volume 17, Issue 6,2026,103009,ISSN 1879-4068,https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jgo.2026.103009.
Noronha, V., Sarkar, L., Pillai, A., Rao, A. R., Kumar, A., Dhekale, R., Mahajan, S., Daptardar, A., Sonkusare, L., Vagal, M., Mahajan, P., Timmanpyati, S., Gota, V., Laskar, S., Budrukar, A., Swain, M., Shetake, A., Chowdhury, O. R., Pawar, A., & Prabhash, K. (2026). Vulnerability assessment and decision-making in older patients with head and neck cancers planned for chemoradiation: Experience from a Tertiary Care Cancer Centre in India. Journal of Cancer Research and Therapeutics, 22(1), 168–174. https://doi.org/10.4103/jcrt.jcrt_880_2
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