‘Cancer claims 273 lives every day in Bangladesh’

At least 273 people die from cancer every day in Bangladesh, according to Health Minister Zahid Maleque.

While speaking at a programme marking the World Cancer Day at Mohakhali’s National Institute of Cancer Research & Hospital or NICRH on Thursday, he said 67 per cent of the daily deaths in Bangladesh are caused by non-infectious diseases.

Along with the development of livelihood, the number of people afflicted by non-infectious diseases is rising, and so is the number of cancer patients, Maleque said.

“There are 2.0 million cancer patients in our country. Around 100,000-150,000 more people are diagnosed with it while nearly another 100,000 die due to the disease each year. It means 273 people die every day.

“We pay no heed to that, although we keep tabs on coronavirus-induced deaths. That’s because of the daily reports, but no one keeps track of how many people die from cancer,” he added.

Citing the poor air quality, adulterated food among other pollutants in Dhaka, the minister said, “These pollutions cause throat and lung cancer. We’ve to stay aware of that.”

Maleque said the government is decentralising the Health Service Division and eight imaging facilities are being set up, one in each division. These will include diagnosis through X-ray, CT scan and MRI.

An Institute of Burns & Plastic Surgery Hospital is also being set up in each division, according to bdnews24.com.

“We will build more hospitals to send health services to the doorsteps of the people, as we did for first aid through community clinics.

“There’ll be no need to travel to Dhaka, it’s expensive. It’s very difficult for people and creates a lot of pressure on the hospitals in Dhaka,” the health minister observed.