Health

Sulaimani Province records 1500 cancer cases in six months

Mohammed Wahab, head of the cancer control department in Sulaimani, told Kurdistan 24 that breast cancer is the most common cancer in the Kurdistan Region.

Kurdistan 24 2023/07/12 23:11

The exterior of Hiwa Hospital in Sulaimani, a cancer treatment center. (Photo: Hiwa Hospital/ Facebook)

Kurdistan Cancer Sulaimani province Breast Cancer Hiwa Hospital

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – Cancer cases in Sulaimani Province have been increasing at an alarming rate. About 15 to 17 new cancer cases are recorded daily, and 1500 cases have been recorded in the past six months. 10% of Sulaimani cancer patients are children.

Dana Karim, 39, who has been suffering from colon cancer for nine months, told Kurdistan 24 that he visits Hiwa Hospital in Sulaimani City every two weeks. He has undergone eight chemotherapy sessions, with four additional remaining sessions.

Furthermore, Mohammed Wahab, head of the cancer control department in Sulaimani, told Kurdistan 24 that breast cancer is the most common cancer in the Kurdistan Region.

“20% of cancer patients in the Kurdistan Region are breast cancer patients, followed by cancers involving the colon, lungs, brain, and leukemia in children,” Wahab stated.

The Kurdistan Region’s healthcare community recently held conferences to mark Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Several activities were also held to raise awareness of the condition.

In 2022, 9,000 cases of cancer were recorded in the Kurdistan Region, with the majority of cases being in Erbil Province.

Among the most common causes of cancer are chronic diseases, environmental pollution, smoking, drinking excessive amounts of alcohol, unhealthy eating, lack of exercise, and obesity.

The disease is still one of the leading causes of death worldwide, as health establishments grapple with finding treatments and developing better diagnostics. Early diagnosis of the disease is widely advised by health officials to prevent the condition from worsening.

Previously in April 2023, the concert 'Hope and Strength for Children with Cancer' was held in Erbil. A number of artists from across Kurdistan participated in the concert to raise money for cancer patients.

And in May 2022, Erbil Province hosted the Cancer and Oncology Research Endeavour Symposium with 500 academics and 200 international guests in attendance. Tishk International University (TIU) and Salahaddin University-Erbil supervised the medical event, which was attended by cancer experts from Germany, Poland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.