JERUSALEM, July 31 (Xinhua) -- Children and adolescents living in Israel's Tel Aviv metropolitan area have higher chances of contracting cancer than children in other parts of the country, a new medical report charges.
The report, published by the U.S.-based Journal of Pediatric Oncology, is based on data on 4,255 cancer patients under age 20, collected by the Health Ministry between 1998 and 2007.
The report finds that in the Gush Dan area, which includes Tel Aviv and neighboring cities like Ramat Gan and Petach Tikva, the average rate of cancer-stricken children is 180.2 per million, the Ha'aretz daily reported Tuesday.
Tel Aviv bypasses the ratio in other areas in Israel: the south (169.1 per million), Jerusalem (168.8 per million), Haifa (168.5 per million) and northern Israel (150.8 per million).
Other findings in the report show that the recovery rate among Israeli children is high -- 80.8 percent survive cancer five years after being diagnosed (higher than the U.S. recovery percentage -- 79.8)
The most common forms of cancer among children in Israel are leukemia (21.8 percent) and lymphoma (20.6 percent).
The study also finds Jewish children have higher chances of contracting cancer than Arab children, but recovery rates among Jews (83.2 percent) are higher than those among Arabs (72.8 percent).
However, cautioned ministry cancer researcher Dr. Micha Barchana, the gaps do not reflect differences in treatment between the communities.
"When researching these gaps we discovered Arab patients diagnose the cancer at later stages, after spreading. Therefore the survival rates are lower. There is no different in the treatment of both populations -- the primary treatment is available for both communities and they are treated at the same hospitals," he told the Ha'aretz daily.
The overall cancer rate in Israel, including adults, is 172.4 per million, similar to the number in America's western states.The most common forms of cancer in Israel are lymphoma and neuroblastoma.
|
