MP SPEAKS If there is one issue that tears families down, it’s cancer. And it’s the fourth highest killer in Malaysia.

The World Health Organisation has predicted that one in two people would have cancer, globally.

And cancer is responsible for over 7.5 million deaths worldwide, every year, and this number is growing.

Research on cancer in the country indicates that one in four persons will suffer from cancer by the time they hit the age of seventy-five. In fact it is reported that every one person in twelve is diagnosed with cancer every twelve minutes.

Despite these alarming statistics, questions I raised at the policy and committee stage debates of Budget 2017 received lukewarm responses from the Health Minister, Dr S Subramaniam.

I asked the government to establish a National Cancer Blueprint including updating the Cancer Registry as part of Budget 2017.

This is because current information on the number of cancer patients is outdated, given that the last registry update was a decade ago, in 2007.

Dr Subramaniam was not forthcoming with answers on both these issues.

This is highly regrettable and unfortunate given that academics and insurance companies are reporting dramatic increases in the number of cancer patients.

At least 90,000 to 100,000 Malaysians live with cancer at any given time and the numbers are predicted to increase by 54 percent by 2025 going by the current pattern.

Every year about 21,733 new cancer cases were recorded, based on the 2007 National Cancer Registry. And at least 10,000 cases go unreported on a yearly basis.

While Dr Subramaniam may not be deliberately withholding information, his nonchalance raises doubts about the Health Ministry’s commitment to fighting cancer.

Otherwise, the government would have taken advantage of my questions and outlined its strategy to address the proliferation of cancer cases in the country.

We all know that budget cuts have adversely affected work carried out by doctors and it’s worrying to think that new polices, such as the National Cancer Blueprint and updating cancer registry are also not possible.

Frightening consequences

This has frightening consequences as it implies that the government would plan and strategise its cancer-related work with outdated information and therefore not be able to effectively address the growing epidemic.

The extent of the problem has to be identified in order for the Health Ministry to respond with effective solutions in the areas of education and awareness, research, health care costs and cancer management.

Living with cancer is a huge financial burden for cancer survivors, wiping out savings in many cases.

Universiti Malaya academic Dr Nirmala Bhoopathy suggests that treating breast cancer on a yearly basis is about RM65,000.

A separate study by iMoney shows that someone suffering from breast cancer in Malaysia needs RM395,000 to go through a complete treatment cycle.

The George Institute for Global Health in Sydney states that 39 percent of Malaysians simply cannot afford the costs of cancer medicines. And at least 19 percent have been forced to quit their treatment as they are unable to pay the medical bills.

As such, government inaction is no longer an option in the war against cancer. The state has a responsibility to ensure affordable health care for all Malaysians, as indicated in its 2012 National Medicines Policy.

Therefore, I urge the Health Ministry to put forward a National Cancer Blueprint in consultation with NGOs and other stakeholders and make immediate plans to update the cancer registry in the interests of public health.

CHARLES SANTIAGO is the Member of Parliament for Klang.