The number of children diagnosed with cancer averaged 1,000 a year, Dr. Suraj Perera, Consultant Community Physician of the National Cancer Control Programme said yesterday addressing the media at the Health Promotion Bureau.Dr. Perera said that 37,553 cancer patients had been reported in 2021.
” Of that 2 to 5 percent were children. During the past 17 years, we have witnessed a rise in paediatric cancer. About 17 years ago, there were only about 500 cases annually,” Perera said, adding that 224 children had died of cancer in 2019. Out of them 118 were boys and 106 girls, he said.
Consultant Paediatric and Adolescent Oncologist, Dr. Sanjeeva Gunasekera said that out of that number between 250 and 300 patients died.
“We can completely cure about 75 percent of children with leukemia. Most paediatric cancers are curable. There are hardly any long term effects of treatments,” he said.
By Rathindra
