Concerned at the increasing number of cancer-related deaths, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has suggested prioritizing cancer prevention and control programmes to deal with the menace. The number of cancer-related deaths in India have increased by almost 60% between 1990 and 2013, whereas the new cases of the disease almost doubled during this period, latest estimates show.
While cancer has already emerged as the second leading cause of death globally after cardiovascular diseases, discussion on how to control the disease burden assumed significance at WHO's South East Asia regional committee meet with focus on the increasing incidence of cancer in developing countries..............
.........According to WHO estimates, 1.1 million deaths and 1.7 million new cases are registered in its South East Asia region every year. India accounts for a major portion with over 1,30,000 mouth cancer cases registered in 2013, the highest in the world; 1,51,304 new breast cancer cases and close to 90,000 new cervical cancer cases.