In 2020, 4.4 million women died from cancer. 78% of these deaths involved women under the age of 50.
THE cancers is a major public health problem with obvious negative consequences for people diagnosed with the disease and its environment.
In a recent announcement at World Congress on Cancer (World Cancer Congress 2022) researchers presented the data on the number of children who are orphaned by a mother due to cancer.
Specifically, in the year 2020 they were recorded 4.4 million women die from cancer. 78% of these deaths involved women under the age of 50. The researchers used United Nations data on world population as well as the average number of live children per woman in each country and the five-year fertility rates of women in each country for the previous 18 years. Based on these figures, it was estimated that approximately 1 million children were left motherless due to cancer deaths worldwide.
Most of these deaths involved the continent of Asia (49%) and Africa (35%) and was most often associated with breast (25% of cases), cervical (18%) and upper gastrointestinal (13%) cancers. In fact, there seems to be an inverse relationship between the human development index and the number of maternal orphans per 100 female deaths. Specifically, Europe which has the highest human development index had the lowest number of orphans per female cancer death.
These items are significantly because they capture for the first time the extent of the problem which can have significant implications for children. As stated by the Professors of the Therapeutic Clinic of the Medical School of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Michalis Liontos (Assistant Professor), Flora Zagouri (Professor), Theodora Psaltopoulou (Professor) and Thanos Dimopoulos (Professor and Rector of EKPA), it is known from studies in orphaned children that they are characterized in some cases by a lower level of education and higher mortality than their peers. Obviously, cancer research must be intensified to reduce mortality from the disease. However, the data of this study show that this can also help the next generation, note the EKPA Professors.
In addition, they add, approx half the deaths are womenwere related to diseases that can be prevented or diagnosed early such as breast and cervical cancer. Therefore, such studies increase public awareness of the intergenerational effects of cancer and highlight the need to reduce the number of preventable cancer deaths.
RES-EMP
Read the News today and get the latest news.
Follow Skai.gr on Google News and be the first to know all the news.
As a seasoned news journalist, I bring a wealth of experience to the field. I’ve worked with world-renowned news organizations, honing my skills as a writer and reporter. Currently, I write for the sports section at News Bulletin 247, where I bring a unique perspective to every story.
