The World Health Organisation (WHO) has continued ranking Vietnam among the countries with the highest rate of cancer fatalities, said Nguyen Chan Hung, chairman of Vietnam Cancer Association.

A surgery on a colorectal cancer patient in Vietnam

Hung released the information at a national conference on cancer in Hanoi on October 6.

Cancer patient numbers in Vietnam have been on the rise with the figure forecast to reach 190,000 cases in 2020 compared to just 68,000 in 2000 and 126,000 in 2010.

Every year, around 115,000 people in Vietnam die of cancer, equal to 315 people per day.

Lung, liver, stomach, rectum and breast cancer were the biggest killers.

According to Dr. Tran Van Thuan, Director of K Hospital in Hanoi, up to 85% of lung cancer patients are related to smoking.

Thuan added that most cancer patients come to hospital quite late, so, treatment was often ineffective and costly, resulting in a high death rate.

The rate of patients who recover from cancer treatment in Vietnam is roughly between 30% and 40%, against 70%-80% in many developed countries.

A report of the Ministry of Health indicated that total cost for breast, lung, rectum, stomach, liver and cervical cancers in Vietnam reached VND25.78 trillion (USD1.2 billion) in 2012, accounting for 0.22% of annual GDP.

Dtinews