46% female cancer patients in India are below 50: Doctors
Forty-six per cent of women suffering from cancer are under 50, a worrying trend that’s likely to continue in the coming years due to lifestyle changes, said doctors.
Late marriages, multiple sex partners and late pregnancy have contributed to incidence of cancer among women, of which breast and cervical cancers are the commonest forms, they said. “Two per cent of the Indian women suffering from cancer are in 20 to 30 years age group, 16 per cent are in 30 to 40, 28 per cent are in 40 to 50 age group. So, almost 46 per cent women patients are below 50,” said Sameer Kaul, Senior Consultant of Surgical Oncology at Indraprastha Apollo Hospital here. He said an increasing number of patients are in the 25 to 40 years of age, which is an “alarming” situation. Since discussing private body parts is a taboo in many communities in India, women prefer to remain silent until their condition becomes unbearable or incurable, Kaul said.
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