"Seventy percent of them will live in countries where only five percent of them have the money needed to treat the cancer," Prof Heintz said in his scientific speech when receiving an honorary decree from the University of Indonesia here on Tuesday.
Gynecologic or cervical cancer is a developing country disease, as 80 percent of the patients live in developing nations, while breast cancer has the highest incidence in the West.
"Cervical cancer theoretically can be prevented, while breast cancer cannot," he said.
However, there are other diseases which are more threatening than cancers. Around one million people die of malaria and tuberculosis (TBC).
"Many people die annually because they don`t have clean drinking water," he said.
However, he said, the fight against cervical cancer must become a priority in developing nations.
A vaccine to prevent cervical cancer is available at the price of 400 US dollars per person, which is still too expensive for people in developing countries, according to him.
Meanwhile, about 270 thousand women in Indonesia die of cervical cancer annually, deputy dean of the medical faculty of the Indonesian Islamic University of Yogyakarta, Titik Kuntari, said recently.
"According to data, every year about 500,000 women in Indonesia are diagnosed with cervical cancer, and 270,000 of them eventually die," she said.
(Uu.F001/HAJM)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
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