China has one of the biggest populations of smokers in the world. (Photo : Reuters)
Cancer is still the second most deadly disease in Shanghai despite a gradual slowdown in its spread, says the city’s disease control and prevention bureau.
The Shanghai Center for Disease Control and Prevention revealed that four out of 1,000 residents in the city are diagnosed with different types of cancer daily, leaving an average number of cancer patients of 162 annually.
However, based on the center's records, cancer is not the deadliest ailment in the country, placing second only to cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease.
Based on the most recent figures provided by the center, some 36,000 reportedly die of the disease every year, most of which are men who comprise 60 percent of those who succumb to death after suffering from cancer.
The city sees about 24 percent of this number who suffer lung cancer cases, the most number of cancer cases followed by colorectal and stomach cancer.
According to a report from Shanghai Daily, mortalities from lung cancer are at 87 per 100,000 among men and 35 per 100,000 for the women, and recorded at an average of 72 cases per 100,000 people in the city, a number higher than that of China's national average of 53.57 out of 100,000.
Dr. Wang Changli of Tianjin Cancer Institute and Hospital explained that smoking, air pollution, chronic lung disease, work-related stress, and genetic susceptibility are some of the main reasons why lung cancer is rampant in the country.
Aside from lung cancer, Shanghai also sees an alarmingly large number of cases of stomach and colorectal cancer, as well as breast cancer whose average is reportedly at 66 per 100,000 women every year.
