As part of President Lai Ching-te’s policy goal of building a healthier Taiwan, a drive to reduce the country’s cancer deaths by one-third by 2030 will be implemented, the Executive Yuan said Dec. 24.
During a cross-ministerial cancer prevention meeting at the EY, Premier Cho Jung-Tai said this will be achieved through a three-pronged approach: improving early-stage screening, focusing on genetic testing and precision medicine, and establishing a NT$10 billion (US$306.09 million) fund to develop new cancer drugs.
According to Cho, statistics released Dec. 19 by the Ministry of Health and Welfare showed that in 2022, more than 130,000 Taiwan citizens were diagnosed with cancer for the first time, up 8,500 from the year before. The MOHW attributed the increase to the fact that more individuals undertook screening and received treatment following the slowdown of the COVID-19 pandemic.
While many causes contributed to cancer, the premier said MOHW findings acknowledged the importance of early screening, which allows patients time to seek treatment and thus improve survival rates.
In particular, as chewing betel nut is a major cause of oral cancers, Cho said there should be clear laws to regulate the crops’ consumption and manage the plantations. He directed the Ministry of Agriculture and other agencies to work together to review progress so far and propose measures, such as public awareness campaigns on its health hazards and guidelines to phase out betel nut plantations.
Starting in 2025, the government will offer subsidies to screen for lung, breast, colon and cervical cancer and for human papillomavirus to an expanded demographic. These include a NT$4,000 subsidy every two years for low-dose computed tomography scan for lung cancer screening for heavy smokers aged 50-74 who consume at least 20 packs of cigarettes per year, as well as women aged 40-74 and men aged 45-74 whose direct family members have been diagnosed with lung cancer.
Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)
