Cancer Awareness

While we care for patients in our facilities, we are continuously striving to educate the public to bring awareness regarding this deadly disease. Our hope is that individuals will be able to take necessary steps to minimize cancer causing activities and create awareness that will enable early detection and prompt treatment.

With this aim in mind we have conducted awareness programs at every level. Awareness programs have been conducted in villages, government factories, schools, the tri-forces, and the corporate sector. We also conduct a monthly poly-clinic and operate charity known as ‘Op-Shop’, which serves the dual purpose of obtaining funds while creating awareness.

Cancer Awareness
by

Dr.Dehan Gunasekara

MBBS; DCH; MD (Oncology)
President – Sri Lanka College of Oncologist

According to the World Health Organization(WHO) in 2018 there are 18.1 million new cancer cases and it is estimated that t here will be 29.5 million new cancer cases by 2040. Cancer is the one of the leading causes of death in the world with 9.8 million in 2018. Estimated lifetime risk of developing cancer is one in five among men and one in six among women while one in eight deaths in men and one in eleven deaths in women due to the cancers.

According to the published data by National Cancer Control Programme(NCCP) Sri Lanka there were 23000 new cases in 2014.Breast cancer is the commonest cancer with women in the world as well as Sri Lanka while in men Lung cancers and Head and Neck cancers respectively are the commonest. Increasing population growth and aging, increased cancer detection and change in the prevalence of certain causes are few factors which will increase cancer burden in Sri Lanka as well as worldwide.

Cancer is a condition, where there is uncontrolled cell growth either due to increased proliferation or decreased cell death in our body. There are several mechanisms at cellular as well as molecular level, which contribute to the above mechanisms. This can occur in any cell in our body leading to various forms of cancers. Dependingon cell proliferation rate, some cancers are slow growing while others are rapidly growing very aggressive cancers.

We can broadly categorize these cancers into solid malignancies and haematological malignancy. Breast, Lung, Colon, Prostate are examplesof solid tumors while Leukemia, Lymphoma and Myeloma are haematological malignancies.

Factors which cause cancers in living tissue are known as “Carcinogens”. These carcinogens categorised into
1.Physical carcinogen like ultraviolet rays, ionizing radiation
2.Chemical carcinogens like tobacco , asbestose, arsenic, aflatoxin
3.Biological gents like Human papilloma virus(HPV), Helicobactor pylori, Hepatitis B virus, Hepatitis C virus

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