VietNamNet Bridge – The number of cancer patients in Vietnam has been on the steep increase, oncology experts told a seminar on cancer prevention in HCMC last week.

Lung cancer is the leading cause of death among Vietnamese males, and the second-most common cause for cancer-related fatalities among females, doctors have said. - Photo suckhoedoisong.vn

Cancer research conducted in Hanoi, Hue, Danang, HCMC and Can Tho showed the number of cancer cases has risen rapidly, with 125,000 new patients and 94,000 deaths caused by the disease annually, said Pham Xuan Dung, deputy director of the city’s Tumor Hospital.

In HCMC, 6,800 new cancer cases were detected in 2010, but the figure has leapt to 8,951 in 2014. The number of cancer patients nationwide going to the HCMC Tumor Hospital for treatment has risen by 28,000 this year.

The disease has become a heavy burden for society. Vietnam ranks 49th among 184 countries in terms of cancer fatalities, said oncology doctors.

Dung said the health sector has increased investment in human resources, treatment facilities, and technology transfer, but such efforts are still not enough to cope with the fast spread of the disease.

The World Health Organization (WHO) predicted cancer would become an epidemic in Vietnam and other countries in the next five years.

In most developed countries, cancer is the second leading cause of death after cardiovascular disease, whereas in developing countries, cancer generally ranks third after cardiovascular and infectious diseases.

Lung cancer is the leading killer disease in males. The leading causes of cancer deaths among females are breast cancer in developed countries, and cervical cancer in developing countries. Stomach cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in both sexes.

SGT