Cancer in the Philippines.

In the Philippines, cancer ranks third in leading causes of morbidity and mortality after communicable diseases and cardiovascular diseases (Department of Health–Health Intelligence Service or DOH–HIS, 1992, 1996). 

Over the period 1942–96, communicable disease mortality has shown a gradually decreasing trend, in contrast to the increasing trends of heart disease and cancer (non-communicable diseases). 

In the Philippines, 75% of all cancers occur after age 50 years, and only about 3% occur at age 14 years and below. If the current low cancer prevention consciousness persists, it is estimated that for every 1800 Filipinos, one will develop cancer annually. At present, most Filipino cancer patients seek medical advice only when symptomatic or at advanced stages: for every two new cancer cases diagnosed annually, one will die within the year. 

The Philippine Cancer Control Program, begun in 1988, is an integrated approach utilizing primary, secondary and tertiary prevention in different regions of the country at both hospital and community levels. Six leading cancers (lung, breast, liver, cervix, oral cavity, colon and rectum) are discussed. 

Incidence by Cancer Site

Cancer incidence data are derived from two population-based cancer registries in the country: the Department of Health–Rizal Cancer Registry (DOH–RCR) and the Philippine Cancer Society Inc.–Manila Cancer Registry (PCSI–MCR). The DOH–RCR covers 26 municipalities of Rizal Province and PCSI–MCR covers the four cities of Quezon, Manila, Caloocan and Pasay. From 1980 to 1995, the leading cancer sites/types have remained the same: lung, breast, cervix uteri, liver, colon and rectum, prostate, stomach, oral cavity, ovary, leukemia, thyroid, uterus, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, larynx and nasopharynx

The top cancer sites in the Philippines include those cancers whose major causes are known (where action can therefore be taken for primary prevention), such as cancers of the lung/larynx (anti-smoking campaign), liver (vaccination against hepatitis B virus), cervix (safe sex) and colon/rectum/stomach (healthy diet). Except for the liver, the top Philippine cancer sites are also the top cancers worldwide.

The problem of childhood cancer in the Philippines is more significant than in Western countries, because of the relatively young Filipino population. The overall pattern is, however, similar and is dominated by leukemia. 

Certain features are similar to those in other Asian populations (low incidence of Wilm’s tumor, Hodgkin’s disease and Ewing’s sarcoma), in contrast to relatively high incidence rates for retinoblastoma and low rates for neuroblastoma and non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma 

Survival from Cancer in the Philippines

The survival experience, regardless of treatment, of patients with top cancer sites diagnosed in 1987 and included in the DOH–RCR was evaluated as the first population-based survival data for Filipinos. Lung cancer had the lowest survival and breast cancer had the highest. 

Five-year survival in excess of 40% was observed for only three cancer sites: oral cavity, colon and breast. For all other sites, survival was less than 30%. Owing to the small number of cases in each category, no distinct impact of age on relative survival could be perceived for most cancer sites. However, both observed and relative survival rates were low for breast cancer patients less than 35 years old. 

The 1987 cancer survival rates among Filipino patients imply that there is much to be done for cancer education and the implementation of all aspects of cancer prevention. In comparison, the 1990 5-year relative survival rates, all races, from the USA National Cancer Institute Surveillance Epidemiology End-result program reveals higher rates except for stomach (males) and liver cancers. 

Mortality from Cancer

Data from the 1991/95 DOH–RCR and the DOH–HIS 1992 and 1996 data indicated that the leading cancer site mortalities were lung, liver, breast, leukemia, stomach, cervix uteri, colon, liver, pancreas, nasopharynx and prostate (in decreasing order of frequency). The top three mortality cancer sites among females were breast, lung and cervix uteri and among males lung, liver and leukemia.

Charity Blogging for Cancer Awareness: for more info visit http://www.lifeandfever.com/2011/09/charity-blogging-for-cancer-awareness.html

A whole-day event for cancer patients and survivors is to be held this December. The event will include contests, freebies, inspirational talks, and performances. Donations are accepted and may be forwarded via PayPal to doc_alma_jones (at) yahoo (dot) com.