Health Ministry release cancer statistics

Manama, July 8 (BNA): A total of 5966 Bahrainis were diagnosed with cancer in fourteen years (January 1998 and December 2011) – an annual average of 426 cases. The Health Ministry reported 52.8% (3151 cases) among Bahraini females, compared with 47.2% (2810 cases) among males Oncologists diagnosed 1,191 cases of breast cancer over the fourteen-year period, in addition to lung cancer (658 cases), Cancer of the colon and rectum (507 cases), leukemia (302), Lymphatic cancer - non- Hodgkin's cancer (293), bladder cancer (276), Prostate cancer (214), thyroid cancer (195). According to update figures released by the Health Ministry, an average of 86.3 cases are diagnosed every year for every 100,000 Bahraini men, compared with an average of 97.5 for women. Genetic history, lifestyle factors such as tobacco use, diet, and lack of physical activity, certain types of infections, and environmental exposures to different types of chemicals and radiation are often cited as the main causes of cancer. Qatar has the lowest rate of cancer incidence among the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, followed respectively by Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, the UAE and the Saudi Arabia.