Mohammad Hussain Khan Published June 15, 2025  Updated about 5 hours ago

   

0

follow ahmadblogger56 

HYDERABAD: The Hyderabad Cancer Registry inaugurated on Saturday at the Diagnostic and Research Laboratory in Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences revealed in its first findings that oral cancer topped the list among men and breast cancer among women.

LUMHS Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Ikram Din Ujjan, who along with Prof Shahid Pervez, consultant histopathology, Aga Khan University, Karachi, opened the registry said that aim of inaugurating the registry was to collect data on cancer patients from all over Pakistan.

He said the LUMHS in collaboration with Karachi Cancer Registry, Health Research Institute, National Institute of Child Health, Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre, Karachi, collected and analysed cancer data of all malignancies from Hyderabad Cancer Registry for 2020-2023 period in various age groups and genders to identify common malignancies and any risk factors to cancer control initiative and prioritisation by the government and private sector.

This massive outreach programme was conducted under the supervision of VC LUMHS Prof Dr Ikram Din Ujjan and Dr Shahid Pervez. The process provided unique opportunity to gather cancer data across the province including remote areas.

All cancer biopsies were transported to central comprehensive diagnostic facility of LUMHS and cancer data of Hyderabad Cancer Registry collected from across the province were analysed using parameters that included age, gender, first contact date, primary site etc.

The data were cleaned, merged and analysed. As per standard guidelines, patients aged 0-14 years were classified as children, 15-19 years as adolescents and aged 20 years and above as adults.

During four years, from January 2020 to December 2023, a total of 7,169 malignant cases were received. This included 3,310 (46.2pc) males and 3,859 (53.8pc) females respectively. Out of a total of 7,169 cases, 6,967 (97.18pc) tumours were seen in adults, 104 (1.45pc) in adolescents and 98 (1.37pc) in children.

In male adults, oral, prostate, and urinary bladder while in females, breast, oral and ovary constituted three most common sites, said the HCR data.

The VC said that both genders combined, breast cancer was the most common malignancy in Sindh. Oral cancer topped the list in males as most common cancer while it was the second most common among females after breast cancer, he said.

He said that oral cancer, though largely a preventable malignancy, had shown an upward trend mostly due to highly prevalent [tobacco] chewing habits while breast cancer, largely a non-preventable one, not only showed an upward trend but more and more cases were occurring in women, whereas in adolescents and children, orbital, oral, brain, colorectal and bone malignancies were predominant.

“Keeping in view prevalence of oral cancer being top on the list of most common preventable cancer in this region, whereas it was 13th globally, we have to crush the root cause and it is high time that government should restrict use of gutkas and other chewable tobacco items,” said the VC.

He said that cost of tobacco smoking articles might be enhanced to discourage people from smoking as this strategy had been implemented in western world and had been proved successful to prevent oral cancer.

He said that female patients attending outpatient department in various hospitals might be encouraged to get their screening done from time to time for detection of breast cancer at its early stage.

Published in Dawn, June 15th, 2025