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CATHERINE W GICHUKI
DOHA
Hamad Medical Corporation's National Center for Cancer Care and Research (NCCCR) receives around 1,400 new cancer cases every year and 220 of the patients are Qatari nationals, according to an official.
"The number of patients visiting NCCCR is gradually increasing. One of the reasons is the rising population of Qatar," Dr Mohammed Ussama al Homsi, HMC's senior consultant physician, consultant in Internal Medicine, and Chairman of Medical Oncology and Haematology Department, said on Sunday, citing 2016 statistics.
Of the 1,600 patients admitted to the hospital in 2016, 1,430 were admitted in the day care (short stay), Dr Homsi added.
He said around 2,400 visited the outpatient clinics, while 6,615 attended to for the urgent care.
Dr Homsi said the most common type of cancer in Qatar is breast cancer."Almost 30 percent of the patients we receive have breast cancer," he said.
According to the recent statistics, the survival rate for breast cancer (from diagnosis to five years) is about 85 percent, which is considered very good compared with other countries.
Dr Homsi reiterated that other cancers like lymphoma, leukaemia and multiple myeloma have good response to treatment.
Pancreatic cancer and liver cancer usually have poor response to treatment.
Lymphoma and colon cancer are other types of cancer which are common in Qatar.
