The fact that more number of women have cancer than men in india reverses the global trend, which sees a 25 percent higher cancer incidence in men than women.
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As alarming as the statistics may look, a question that bothers one more is why there are more number of Indian women than men who are diagnosed with cancer.
Breast cancer, cervical, ovarian and uterine cancer account for 70 per cent of cancer cases among women in India, mentions Soutik Biswas, in an article in BBC.
Breast cancer alone accounts for 27 per cent of all cases among women, less than 10 per cent of which are inherited.
Biswas talks about a study published in The Lancelot Oncology, according to which the peak age of the onset of breast and ovarian cancer in India is at 45-50 years in India. This is a decade younger than the peak age–which is 60 years–in high-income countries, a development that could be attributed to genetic and environment factors.
Dr Ravi Mehrotra, director of the National Institute of Cancer Prevention and Research, and one of the authors of the study, suggests that the known risk factors for breast cancer include high-fat diet, obesity, late marriage, fewer children, inadequate breast feeding.
Biswas also talks about the incidence of breast cancer being the highest in Delhi. What could be the reason?
Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia, points out in one of her articles, the general causes behind cancer in South-East Asia. She categorically mentions that apart from unhealthy diet and other lifestyle issues, tobacco use, occupational hazards, and exposure to environmental substances, including outdoor air pollution could be the reason behind cancer.
Both men and women can be subjected to the above factors. What makes it more dangerous for women is mainly lack of awareness, for which they may be diagnosed late, or their reluctance to visit a doctor.
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