Task force happy with focus on healthcare

KUCHING: The Sarawak branch of Together Against Cancer (TAC) Malaysia’s task force is pleased that both Barisan Nasional (BN) and PKR are touching on the topic of healthcare in the run up to the state election. Sarawak BN’s point no 9 in its list of 15-point manifesto says ‘Enhance accessibility to health service’ whereas PKR’s 18-point roadmap includes ‘Healthcare for the rural’ in point no 9. “Cancer is in fact a leading cause of death in Malaysia. According to the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010 (GBD2010) [1] years of life lost, cancer ranks fourth after circulatory diseases (heart disease and stroke), infection and injury. The International Agency for Research on Cancer through its GLOBOCAN project [2] has estimated that there were 37,400 new cases of cancer and 21,700 cancer deaths in Malaysia in 2012. The top 5 ranking cancers in Malaysia are breast (5,410 cases), large intestine (colo-rectum 4,539), lung (4,403), cervix (2,145), and throat (nasopharynx, 2,030).