Cancer Shortens Women’s Life By 10 Years In Assam

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Breast, cervical and gall bladder cancer shorten women’s life by more than 10 years on average in Assam.

A study conducted by B. Borooah Cancer Institute (BBCI) has found that breast and cervical cancers remain key contributors to deaths among women. Ovarian cancer in Kamrup (Metropolitan) district shortens a woman’s life by an average 17 years, breast cancer by 15 years, and gall bladder cancer by 12 years.

During the study, BBCI director Dr Amal Chandra Kataki and his colleagues Manoj Kalita and Jagannath Dev Sharma had analyzed 2,259 cancer deaths documented in Kamrup Metropolitan district between 2010 and 2014 and calculated the years-of-life-lost (assuming life expectancy at birth as 64.8 years for women).The deaths among women due to breast, cervix and ovaries occur at lower ages and thus women lose higher numbers of years than men.

According to the study oesophagal cancer caused when the food pipe that runs from the throat to the stomach sees abnormal growth of cells, is the leading cause of deaths in both men and women in Assam. A five-year analysis of cancer data by the BBCI has found that oesophagal cancer contributed to nearly 16 per cent of cancer deaths in men and 12 per cent in women in State. Even though the exact causes for high oesophagal cancer cases in Assam are still under investigation, chewing betel nut and consumption of tobacco has been a major contributing factor for such cancer cases.

Dr Amal Chandra Kataki said the findings has only highlighted the urgent need to intensify campaigns in the State to help lower the cancer death figures, especially from breast and cervical cancers, by improving early diagnosis and treatment. He said many patients with these cancers can be saved through timely detection and treatment.

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