February is worldwide Cancer Awareness Month. Cancer is one of the leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Cancer can be reduced if detected by early screening and diagnosis, and then treated early.
Did you know these facts about cancer?
Most Common Cancers: Here are the most commonly diagnosed cancers (in order of frequency) worldwide according to the CDC:
- Men: Lung, Prostate, Colorectal, Stomach, Liver
- Women: Breast/Colorectal/Lung/Cervical/Stomach
Cancers of major public health relevance such as breast, cervical and colorectal cancer can be cured if detected early and treated adequately.
Cancer by the Numbers:
- Cancer causing viral infections such as HBV/HCV and HPV are responsible for up to 20% of cancer deaths in low- and middle-income countries.
- More than 60% of world’s total new annual cases occur in Africa, Asia and Central and South America. These regions account for 70% of the world’s cancer deaths.
- The number of new cases is expected to rise by about 70% over the next 2 decades.
CTK’s Cancer Detection and Screening Offering:
- H. pylori: First discovered between 1979 to 1982, the World Health Organization has declared H. pylori as a Class 1 carcinogen (cancer causing agent). See CTK’s H. pylori offering >
- Fecal Occult Blood: While the test is used to find blood in the stool, it does not directly detect colon cancer but it is often used in clinical screening for the disease. See CTK’s FOB offering >
- Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA): This test measures the level of PSA in the blood as PSA is often elevated in men with prostate cancer. The PSA test is also used to monitor patients with a history of prostate cancer to check if the cancer has come back (recurrence). See CTK’s PSA offering >
- Hepatitis B & Hepatitis C: Chronic hepatitis B and C are recognized as major factors increasing the risk of HCC (hepatocellular carcinoma). HBsAg and HCV antibodies are the markers of HBV and HCV infection and now available in a single rapid test kit. See CTK’s HBV & HCV offering >