Indonesia overwhelmed with cancer patients

Indonesia overwhelmed with cancer patients

JAKARTA (JP): Health authorities and hospitals are fighting a
losing battle to keep pace with the rapidly increasing number of
cancer patients, a leading oncologist laments.

Dr. Didid Tjindarbumi told a seminar on Saturday that cancer
affects about 100 out of 100,000 Indonesians annually, and that
only a small number of them receive medical treatment.

"It's overwhelming," he said. "An estimated 180,000 new cancer
sufferers were found this year alone, while not all of those
already affected from previous years have been handled well."

Due to various reasons, including ignorance and poverty, only
some 50 percent of all people affected by cancer receive medical
attention. Some 40 percent of those who finally see doctors and
are treated at hospitals cannot be saved because their illnesses
have reached advanced stages.

In 1989, cancer was the sixth leading cause of death here. It
is expected that its occurrence will grow along with increases in
life expectancy, changes in lifestyle, and changes in patterns of
illness here, from infections to degenerative diseases.

A study of 17 hospitals and 14 pathologic installations here
revealed that cervical cancer is the most common form of cancer,
followed by breast, lymphoid and skin cancers.

The incidence of cancer of the cervix accounts for 73.2
percent of all female cancer patients, followed by 10.5 percent
with ovarian cancer.

Held by the Dharmais Cancer Hospital and the Panasea health
magazine, the seminar was attended mostly by women who flinched
when Tjindarbumi showed slides of breast cancer patients, and
later rained the doctor with anxious questions.

Sexual promiscuity

Another speaker at the seminar was gynecologist Dr. Boyke Dian
Nugraha who explained that sexual promiscuity greatly increases
the risk of cervical cancer.

He quoted studies which showed that the incidence of cancer in
the cervix and uterus is twice as high in women with more than
one sexual partner. He advocated "healthy sexual behavior" as
well as a healthy diet, refraining from smoking and reducing
stress, as ways to prevent cancer.

Tjindarbumi said there is a more than 30 percent chance that
cancer can be prevented. About one third of all types of cancer
are curable, while another third are incurable, but "the
patients' quality of life can be improved," he said.

He went on to explain that the only effective approach to
handling cancer, particularly breast cancer, is by identifying
people included in "high risk group" and educating them.

Among those in the high risk group are unmarried women over 30
years of age with a family history of breast cancer, or those who
give birth when they are above 35 years of age, as well as those
who do not breast-feed, and obese women.

"The older women are, the higher their risk of contracting
cancer," he said.

Tjindarbumi added that oral contraceptives, which usually
consist of a combination of estrogen and progesterone hormones,
do not increase the risk of cancer, but should not be given to
women between 20 to 30 years of age. (swe)