Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital recorded a 15% increase in cancer examinations in the first 9 months of the year compared to the same period last year, about 4,500-4,700 patients a day.
“Last year the hospital welcomed more than 720,000 medical examinations and treatments with about 82% of people coming from other provinces and cities, while this rate was previously 75%,” said Dr. Diep Bao Tuan, Deputy Executive Director of the Hospital. Oncology in Ho Chi Minh City, said at Cooperation signing ceremony to improve the quality of cancer management and preventionbetween the hospital and Mecrk Healthcare Vietnam, October 19.
According to Dr. Tuan, the reason for the increase in cancer examinations and treatment is the increasing incidence of the disease, in the context of population increase and average life expectancy increasing. Because, the older you are, the more time you have accumulated and been exposed to risk factors, the higher the disease rate.
In addition, the increase in per capita income, increasingly better health insurance policies, increased people’s awareness, and developed transportation infrastructure… also contribute to making more and more people access to medical examination and treatment.
Not to mention, medicine is constantly developing with many means of diagnosing and detecting cancer early, people have the conditions for early screening, so the number of people diagnosed with the disease increases. Thanks to increasingly advanced treatment methods, patient survival time is high and cancer re-examination visits are also increasing.
Dr. Diep Bao Tuan, Deputy Executive Director of Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital. Image: Minh Thu
Besides cancer risk factors such as genetics, living environment, air and water pollution, unhealthy habits such as drinking alcohol, smoking, eating and living irregularly also contribute. pathogenic part. For example, a diet low in vegetables and fruits and too much protein and fat increases the risk of colorectal cancer and many other cancers. Consuming a lot of pickles containing nitrates and nitrites can easily cause esophageal and stomach cancer. Eating moldy foods containing aflatoxin causes liver cancer.
To meet the increasing needs of patients, the hospital has recently implemented many solutions such as admitting patients from 5:00 a.m., increasing the number of radiotherapy cases starting early in the morning and ending around 10:00 p.m. This place also implemented measures to reduce waiting time for surgery to 1 to 3 weeks, doctors performed surgery outside office hours and on Saturdays…
The leader of Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital said that it is expected that next month a genetic cancer consultation clinic will be put into operation, helping people with family members with cancer to receive advice and have a screening plan to prevent cancer. early disease prevention. This place will also build a high-tech Screening and Diagnosis Center.
“Before, we worried about taking care of the sick but forgot about the healthy,” Dr. Tuan said. Screening even before symptoms appear helps detect the disease at a very early stage, making treatment more gentle and increasing the chance of complete cure.
Ho Chi Minh City is coordinating with provinces and cities in the region to implement screening, improve quality and efficiency in diagnosing and treating common cancer diseases in each locality. Places formed together Regional cancer prevention networkpatient care from screening and cancer detection to end-stage, palliative treatment, end-of-care and community care. The network is not only in Ho Chi Minh City but also extends to the Mekong Delta, the Southeast, the Central Highlands, and the South Central region.
Patients wait for medical examination at Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital, facility 2, Thu Duc City. Image: Quynh Tran
The International Agency for Research on Cancer (Globocan) estimates that each year Vietnam has more than 180,000 new cases and more than 120,000 people die from cancer. In both sexes, the top 5 types of cancer are breast, liver, lung, stomach and rectum. In 2022, the cancer incidence rate in Vietnam ranks 90th out of 185 countries, but the mortality rate ranks 50th and is increasing on the global rankings. The reason is believed to be that many people are diagnosed with the disease at a late stage, so mortality is high.
People raise awareness of prevention by living a healthy lifestyle, eating properly, limiting processed foods, quitting smoking, reducing alcohol, exercising regularly… Get vaccinated to prevent diseases. Get a regular health check every year and see a doctor immediately if there are any unusual signs. Proactively screen for early cancer according to recommendations for age and risk groups.