About 150000 Bangladeshis die of cancer every year

About 150000 Bangladeshis die of cancer every year. Photo: UNB
About 150000 Bangladeshis die of cancer every year. Photo: UNB

Specialists on Sunday said cancer is not a single disease rather it contains more than 200 diseases.

The cells of the human body revolt against themselves and start growing irregularly and uncontrollably at any part of in the body and gradually, unknown to the affected person spread rapidly.

They came up with these remarks at Ahsania Mission Cancer Hospital in the city marking the World Cancer Day, 2018.

The specialists also said that one-third of all cancer diseases are preventable, one-third cancer diseases can be cured if diagnosed at the initial stage and one-third terminal cancer diseases can be alleviated or the suffering eased to return a person to normal life through proper treatment.

Quoting International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), speakers said that in 2005, mortality rate due to cancer was 7.5 per cent. In 2030 the rate would increase to 13 per cent, they predicted.

Lung and mouth cancer causes the largest number of deaths due to cancer among men and breast and ovary cancer cause the largest number of deaths among females.

Senior Consultant of Oncology department of Ahsania Mission Cancer and General Hospital (AMCGH) professor AMA Shariful Alam said about 800,000 to 1 million patients are suffering from cancer in Bangladesh.

Approximately 200,000 more people are affected and about 150,000 people die from this disease every year, he said, quoting the World Health Organisation (WHO).

AMCGH’s medical services director professor Kamruzzaman Chowdhury delivered the welcome speech while International University of Business Agriculture and Technology (IUBAT) vice-chancellor professor Abdur Rab and Harvard University professor Jahidul Islam also spoke on the occasion.

Film actor Farooque was present as special guest at the programme, which was presided over by the Dhaka Ahsania Mission president Kazi Rafiqul Alam.