The causes of cancer remain unknown
One in every three people in South Africa will be diagnosed with cancer, says Adri Ras, area manager for Cansa in Polokwane.
POLOKWANE – One in every three people in South Africa will be diagnosed with cancer, says Adri Ras, area manager for Cansa in Polokwane.
Ras adds that more people die of cancer in the world every day than people diagnosed with HIV/aids, tuberculosis or malaria.
“It is difficult to give an exact number of how many people die of cancer in South Africa because government has not established a cancer register yet,” Ras explains.
She says by 2030, the number of people diagnosed with cancer will have increased dramatically.
“This includes all types of cancers, but the most common types are leukaemia, as well as eye, liver, brain, lung, and prostate cancer. Even more alarming is the fact that cancer can be prevented, but people are not educated when it comes to the disease,” Ras says.
Ras explains that the most common treatment for cancer is chemotheraphy and radiation therapy, but cancer can be prevented if people stuck to healthy and balanced diets and if they exercised regularly.
Ras says the reason for the increase in number of reported cancer cases lately is still unknown, but the department of health and Cansa are working on a partnership in doing research to find out what the cause is.
In the past two months Review reported about six people who were diagnosed with cancer and died shortly thereafter.
They were diagnosed with different types of cancers which included bone cancer, leukaemia, lymphoma, cervical cancer and rhabdomyosarcoma (muscle cancer).
