Citing the increase in breast cancer fatalities in the city, the Shanghai Women's Federation (SWF) has suggested that Shanghai's medical insurance system should consider covering drugs used for the disease's treatment.
During a press conference held on Tuesday, SWF vice president Weng Wenlei emphasized an alarming increase in the incidence of breast cancer in Shanghai for the past years, recording nearly 6,000 breast cancer cases for 2012, an increase of about 12.5 percent since 2009.
In support to the organization's claims, Fudan University Cancer Hospital Director for Breast Surgery Shao Zhimin noted how China sees a doubled "average global pace" in breast cancer cases in the country.
Shao also forecast the number of breast cancer patients to reach 2.5 million by 2021.
Breast cancer, which is initially signaled by a breast lump, has become a common worry among women from all walks of life, not sparing celebrities like Chinese singer Yao Beina.
According to China-Woman.com, the biological drug used to treat HER2-positive breast cancer is still not covered by the Shanghai medical insurance system.
However, some regions in China, including the provinces of Jiangsu and Jiangxi and several cities in Gansu, Hainan and the Ningxia Hui Autonomous region, had already begun incorporating this medicine to their medical insurance systems.
Guangzhou in Guangdong Province and Qingdao in Shandong Province had also made the amendment to their medical insurance system to include the ever-needed breast cancer drug.
Because of this, the SWF concluded that authorities in Shanghai should also consider doing the same as well as aid breast cancer patients by covering a certain percentage of drug-related costs should they incur expenditures over the allowed deductible threshold for a year.