KOTA BHARU: There are now more women having breast cancer compared to the five years before 2020, with one out of 23 women at risk, warns a Health Ministry expert.
The ministry's breast and endocrine surgery services head Datuk Dr Imi Sairi Ab Hadi said the number in the last five years had increased compared to the ratio of one in 27 women recorded at risk of getting the disease before 2020.
He said data showed that the ratio of breast cancer among Indian women was higher, with one in 17 of them at risk of the disease, followed by one in 19 (Chinese women) and one in 26 (Malay women).
"This was probably closely related to differences in lifestyles, diet, and genetics, in addition to factors such as smoking or alcohol consumption," he told Bernama at a breast cancer seminar held by the Cancer and Chronic Kasih Foundation (CCKF) here on Thursday (Oct 17).
Dr Imi Sairi said in the last five-year period, his team had found that nearly half of the patients sought treatment when their cancer had already reached stages three and four.
According to him, stage one and two breast cancer patients had up to a 90% higher chance of survival, compared to stage three and four cases, where only 20 per cent of them can survive for five years after treatment.
"The trend in the ages of breast cancer patients in the past five years has also been found to be affecting younger women, as early as 35 years old, compared to 40 to 50 years old previously."
"Therefore, I advise women to be more aware of this matter and take steps to seek treatment earlier if they notice they have signs of this disease," he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Imi Sairi added that there have been 980 women from Kelantan diagnosed with breast cancer from 2020 up to this year, with ages ranging from 40 to 60 years. - Bernama
