'One out of 1,000' people suffer from cancer

JAKARTA (JP): One out of every 1,000 Indonesians in Java and Bali suffers from cancer, an expert said on Saturday.

Tjahjono, a professor of anatomic pathology at the Semarang- based University of Diponegoro in Central Java, said based on his research from 1990 to 1995 there were 100 cancer cases for every 100,000 residents on the two islands, Antara reported.

From the research conducted with his colleagues along the north Java coast it emerged that ovarium cancer topped the list of most frequent cancer followed by breast, lung and skin cancers.

Cancer claimed an average of 38,000 lives in the country per year, and 190,000 other people contracted it, he said.

Tjahjono, the head of the university's biomedics program, said ovarium cancer made up 20 percent of the research cases, and breast cancers about 15 percent.

Cancer has become the sixth leading killer here and its increasing incidence is brought on by a change in diet and increased industrialization, he said. A decade ago cancer was still number 12 on the list of fatality-causing diseases.

It is stated that 6.25 million people in the world -- mostly females -- are struggling with cancer, one percent of whom have lost the battle.

But Tjahjono said women should not be too alarmed if they found lumps on their body.

"Nine out of 10 lumps found around the breasts are not malignant and can be cured through surgery," he said, adding that a routine medical examination was necessary.

However he added that many people still lacked awareness of how to make an early detection even though no pain might be felt.

In the last 10 years degenerative diseases have increased as the main cause of deaths, compared to infections. (edt)