CANCER- THE DEADLY KILLER !

Rising tobacco use in developing countries is believed to be a huge reason for the shift, particularly in China and India, where 40 per cent of the world's smokers now live. So is better diagnosing of cancer, along with the downward trend in infectious diseases that used to be the world's leading killers. Cancer diagnoses around the world have steadily been rising and are expected to hit 12 million this year. Global cancer deaths are expected to reach 7 million, according to the new report by the World Health Organisation. An annual rise of 1 per cent in cases and deaths is expected - with even larger increases in China, Russia and India. That means new cancer cases will likely mushroom to 27 million annually by 2030, with deaths hitting 17 million. Underlying all this is an expected expansion of the world's population - there will be more people around to get cancer. The report was released yesterday by WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer at a news conference with officials from the American Cancer Society, the Lance Armstrong Foundation, Susan G Komen for the Cure and the National Cancer Institute of Mexico. The "unprecedented" gathering of organisations is an attempt to draw attention to the global threat of cancer, which isn't recognised as a major, growing health problem in some developing countries, said John Seffrin, the cancer society's Chief Executive Officer. The organisations are issuing a call to action, asking the US government to help fund cervical cancer vaccinations and to ratify an international tobacco control treaty.