via Prostate cancer rates rising – DailyNews Live 15 December 2014 by Wendy Muperi
HARARE – Prostate cancer rates are increasing more than three percent per year among young Zimbabwean men, according to a new study by the Zimbabwe Cancer Registry (ZCR).
Testicular tumors are already among the most common cancers for men.
“The major highlight of the data for 2012 is the continued dominance of prostate cancer as the most frequently occurring cancer in Zimbabwean men,” ZCR’s report says.
“The incidence of prostate cancer increased by 3 percentage points from 15, 4 percent in 2011 to 18, 1 percent in 2012.”
The most common symptom of testicular cancer is a painless lump on one testicle.
Most cases are discovered “accidentally” by men or their partners.
Treatment has good outcomes — even in cases of the disease being at an advanced stage.
“In women, cervical cancer continued to dominate other cancers, with breast cancer trailing a distant second by 23 percentage points,” the report said.
“Cervical cancer in Zimbabwean black women being the most common now stands at 34, 6 percent.”.
The total number of new cancer cases recorded nationally are 6 107 from 5 553 in 2011.
Women constitute 57, 1 percent of the recorded cases.
Eric Chokunonga, the ZCR registrar, said, “Cancer of the cervix remains the major cause of morbidity and mortality in the country when we look at all cancers.”
A total of 1 556 cancer deaths occurred in Harare in 2012 with cervical cancer being the lead killer, followed by Kaposi sarcoma, cancer of the oesophagus and prostate cancer respectively.
A total of 211 childhood cancers of all races were registered in 2012.
Provincial information shows that Harare is in the lead at 38,2 percent, Mashonaland East follows at 13,2 percent, Bulawayo 12,7 percent, Manicaland 5 percent, Mashonaland West 5,8 percent, Midlands 5,5 percent, Mashonaland Central 4,8 percent, Masvingo 4,2 percent, Matabeleland North 2,9 percent and Matabeleland South 1,2 percent.
Chokunonga said, “We are pleased to publish the annual report for 2012 barely six months after the release of the 2011 report as we intensify efforts to reduce the reporting backlog and to provide more up-to-date information on the incidence and pattern of occurrence of cancer in Zimbabwe.”
With the burden of cancer growing steadily, experts are lobbying government to shift its focus to non-communicable diseases.
Government is mooting the introduction of a health fund to cater for both infectious and non-infectious diseases.
The growing cancer burden is being attributed to sedentary lifestyle while others argue it is because of increased awareness of the disease and reporting.
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