China Observes Mounting Gastric Cancer

Deaths caused by gastric cancer are supposed to progressively increase over the next two decades in China as the disease proliferates, posits Chinese cancer expert.

It is estimated that for the segment of population above the age of 65, there will be 860,022 new gastric cancer cases annually by the year 2030, Liang Han, an expert from the Tianjin Cancer Hospital, said at a gastric cancer forum that was held in north China's city of Tianjin April 21-22.

"It will be a tremendous task to prevent and control gastric cancer in China," said Liang, who is also a committee member of the Chinese Anti-Cancer Association.

Liang said China has been badly hit by the disease, as it is home to the most gastric cancer patients of any country. He cited World Health Organization statistics to say that China's gastric cancer cases account for 43 percent of the global total of 989,000 each year, reported Xinhua.

Liang said there is a difference between urban and rural people in terms of morbidity and mortality of gastric cancer.

Increased Risk of Certain Gastric Cancers Associated With Heavy Drinking
Excessive drinking may increase the risk for a certain type of gastric cancer, but not with moderate intake of alcohol, results from a meta-analysis have shown.

Gastric cancer is the prime contributor to malignant tumor morbidity and mortality in rural areas, while in cities, it is ranked second and third, respectively, Liang said.

The morbidity of gastric cancer in rural areas is 2.2 times of that in cities, while its mortality is 2.5 times greater, according to Liang.

Study Finds No Survival Benefit for Gastric Cancer Patients
A more intensive postoperative chemotherapy regimen for high-risk gastric cancer patients did not improve their survival.

Although China has made progress in gastric cancer diagnosis and treatment, it is still lagging behind Japan and South Korea, Liang said.

Source-IANS