New Delhi: Lung cancer in Southeast Asia is "very different in countless ways" from that in other parts of Asia and the West, highlighting an urgent need for research in the region, scientists have said.
The researchers also found that the genetic makeup of lung cancer in India is "shaped by the intricate diversity of its people."
They also found that a "substantial proportion" of lung cancer patients in India never smoked and that air pollution can cause lung cancer even in non-smokers.
The scientists called for region-focused studies on how specific climate variables, such as air pollution and other environmental cancer-causing agents, directly contribute to lung cancer.
Compared to the rest of the world, the India-to-world ratio in terms of lung cancer research is 0.51, said a team of researchers, including those from Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai.
The authors, in the research series published in The Lancet journal eClinical Medicine, reviewed available data generated in Southeast Asia to better understand the profile of lung cancer in the region, focusing on India. They found that a "substantial proportion" of lung cancer patients never smoked.
The team studied mutations linked to lung cancer and found that EGFR and ALK had a prevalence of 30 and 10 percent, respectively. EGFR is associated with little or no smoking history.
"Although several guidelines exist, we need a set of dynamic guidelines that change with scientific changes and are regionally focused, developed from data generated in Southeast Asia rather than based on global data," the authors wrote. .
In another article in the series, researchers, including those from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, found that air pollution can cause lung cancer even in non-smokers. They analyzed the impact of climate change on lung cancer in Asia.
South Asia is home to 37 of the world's 40 most polluted cities, and India is among the four most polluted countries, the authors said, citing the World Air Quality Report 2022.
Climate change is known to increase the likelihood of extreme weather events, including floods, storms and heat waves.
These events can damage critical infrastructure, disrupt health systems and potentially expose increasing numbers of people to carcinogens in the environment, the authors said.
In 2022, 81 weather, climate and water-related disasters occurred. With more than 83 percent flooding and storms, more than 50 million people were directly affected, they said, citing the World Meteorological Organization's Asia Climate Status Report. (WMO).
China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand have been the worst affected by natural disasters in Asia, and these countries had the highest cases of lung cancer in 2020 with over 9.65 lakh new cases, the researchers said.
According to the WMO's Asia Climate Report 2023, Asia "remains" the most affected region in the world in terms of experiencing extreme weather events.
"As climate change continues to develop, the burden of lung cancer, already a major public health challenge in Asia, increases," the authors wrote.
They called for studies on how specific climate variables, such as air pollution and other environmental cancer-causing agents, directly contribute to lung cancer.
The researchers also found that the genetic makeup of lung cancer in India is "shaped by the intricate diversity of its people."
They also found that a "substantial proportion" of lung cancer patients in India never smoked and that air pollution can cause lung cancer even in non-smokers.
The scientists called for region-focused studies on how specific climate variables, such as air pollution and other environmental cancer-causing agents, directly contribute to lung cancer.
Compared to the rest of the world, the India-to-world ratio in terms of lung cancer research is 0.51, said a team of researchers, including those from Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai.
The authors, in the research series published in The Lancet journal eClinical Medicine, reviewed available data generated in Southeast Asia to better understand the profile of lung cancer in the region, focusing on India. They found that a "substantial proportion" of lung cancer patients never smoked.
The team studied mutations linked to lung cancer and found that EGFR and ALK had a prevalence of 30 and 10 percent, respectively. EGFR is associated with little or no smoking history.
"Although several guidelines exist, we need a set of dynamic guidelines that change with scientific changes and are regionally focused, developed from data generated in Southeast Asia rather than based on global data," the authors wrote. .
In another article in the series, researchers, including those from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, found that air pollution can cause lung cancer even in non-smokers. They analyzed the impact of climate change on lung cancer in Asia.
South Asia is home to 37 of the world's 40 most polluted cities, and India is among the four most polluted countries, the authors said, citing the World Air Quality Report 2022.
Climate change is known to increase the likelihood of extreme weather events, including floods, storms and heat waves.
These events can damage critical infrastructure, disrupt health systems and potentially expose increasing numbers of people to carcinogens in the environment, the authors said.
In 2022, 81 weather, climate and water-related disasters occurred. With more than 83 percent flooding and storms, more than 50 million people were directly affected, they said, citing the World Meteorological Organization's Asia Climate Status Report. (WMO).
China, India, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand have been the worst affected by natural disasters in Asia, and these countries had the highest cases of lung cancer in 2020 with over 9.65 lakh new cases, the researchers said.
According to the WMO's Asia Climate Report 2023, Asia "remains" the most affected region in the world in terms of experiencing extreme weather events.
"As climate change continues to develop, the burden of lung cancer, already a major public health challenge in Asia, increases," the authors wrote.
They called for studies on how specific climate variables, such as air pollution and other environmental cancer-causing agents, directly contribute to lung cancer.
