Materia Medica Malaysiana

'One in 5 Malaysians would get cancer'
Alarming findings of study show that nose, throat, breast and lung cancers are the most common
KUALA LUMPUR - Malaysia has the world's highest rate of nose and throat cancer for females and the second-highest rate for males, according to a study here.

It also found that almost 20 per cent of the population would suffer from at least one form of cancer.

Describing the trend as 'disturbing', Health Minister Chua Jui Meng said a Cabinet paper would detail the findings of the first National Cancer Registry report, as well as strategies to combat the disease.

Among the other findings of the report are:

Breast cancer remains the most common cancer in all ethnic groups in women aged 20 and above;

Lung cancer is the most common cancer among males of all three major ethnic groups;

Chinese have the highest risk of getting cancer, followed by Indians and Malays, with ratios of 1:4, 1:5 and 1:7 respectively, while the risk is 1:4 for Malaysians when unregistered cases are taken into account;

82 per cent of all new cancer patients will be aged 40 and above - about 40,000 new cases are reported yearly;

One in 19 Malaysian women will get breast cancer but Chinese women have a risk of one in 14; and

Chinese are most vulnerable to breast, lung or nose cancers, Indians to mouth, larynx, oesophagus and tongue cancers, and Malays to thyroid cancer, lymphatic leukaemia and lymphoma.

In Peninsular Malaysia last year, 26,089 cancers were diagnosed in 11,815 males and 14,274 females.

'However, an estimated 10,656 cases were not registered,' Datuk Chua said. 'We are trying to ascertain whether the alarming finding of cancer among Malaysians is due to food, environment, lifestyle in the workplace and at home, or some other reasons.'

The clinical cancer research unit will prepare a Cabinet paper on its findings and formulate strategies to help prevent the disease, he said.

Among the programmes would be no-smoking campaigns, screening programmes for early detection, breast self-examination and other lifestyle initiatives.

Malaysia is chronically short of cancer specialists. It has only 16 clinical haematologists and 11 paediatric oncologists but 120 are needed in each field.

The 37 clinical oncologists available are at least 60 fewer than the number needed. -- New Straits Times, The Star/Asia News Network