About 1,000 Ghanaians will die this year from liver cancer

• Posted on March 4, 2014March 4, 2014
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

About 1,000 Ghanaians will die this year from liver cancer. It is estimated that 2,000 cases of liver cancer were recorded each year from 2012 to 2013.

Dr Kofi Mensah Nyarko, Programme Manager for Non-Communicable Diseases Control of the Ghana Health Service, disclosed this to The Finder in an interview in Accra yesterday.

He stated that out of those affected by liver cancer last year, 1,500 were males and 500 were females.

According to him, the figures for liver cancer cases could even be higher since most of the cases go unreported in the rural areas, where systems and structures are not properly defined.

Dr Nyarko said over 90% of liver cancer sufferers are likely to die.

He said the causative factors of liver cancer are hepatitis B, alcohol abuse, drug abuse, smoking and lack of regular check-up.

Dr Nyarko advised Ghanaians to take preventative measures in order to protect their livers since there is no cure for the disease.

He pointed out that hepatitis B, which is one of the risk factors, could be eliminated; hepatitis B vaccines are available, he said, and called on all Ghanaians to get vaccinated.

Dr Nyarko bemoaned the fact that most cancer cases are reported late when the disease is at its terminal stage.

Liver cancers are cancers that affect the liver; there are two forms of liver cancers – primary liver cancers and secondary liver cancers.

Primary liver cancers start from the liver while secondary liver cancers start from other organs and spread to the liver.

Some symptoms of liver cancer are swollen tummy, jaundice, weight loss, dark coloured urine and fatigue.

In Ghana, however, breast, cervical, liver and prostate cancers are predominate among men and women.

Unlike prostate cancer, which affects men, liver cancer affects both sexes.

-The Finder