EARLY NOTIFICATION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 26791, 7 June 1948, Page 4

EARLY NOTIFICATION

CANCER SYMPTOMS URGENCY STRESSED In a broadcast address last night, Sir James Elliott, president of the New Zealand branch of the British Empire Cancer Campaign Society, stressed the necessity for treatment of the disease in its earliest stages. “If faced early, it is very often vanquished,” he said. Sir James divided the growth of cancers into three stages. At first there was local growth only, he said. Later adjacent glands were involved, and finally more distant organs became affected. Freedom from symptoms after treatment in the various stages ranged from 90 per cent, in the earliesl period to less than 5 per cent, in the last. “ If, therefore, we are to get more cures, it can only be by finding more patients in stage one, the stage of painlessness, and not when they have become the mere despair of surgery,” Sir James added. An idea of the serious toll the . disease was taking could be obtained from the estimate that of people over the age of 50 one in seven would die of cancer—in New Zealand well over 2000 a year, he said. Cancer was the second highest cause of death in New Zca- , land, coming after diseases of the heart and of the blood vessels. Although many of the causes of cancer were known and progress was being made, it had not yet been discovered what made healthy cells take the wrong turning and multiply with amazing fertility. The fight was being carried on by the New Zealand branch of the society with its research laboratory in the Medical School at Dunedin. The society maintained, also, at considerable cost, an X-ray and radium labmatory at Christchurch, and standardised all X-ray treatment machines in New Zealand, for accuracy and safety. II supplied radon, or radium vapour, fothe whole Dominion. This laboratory, known beyond New Zealand, held a key position in the treatment of cancer in suitable cases, and its prevention in occupational cancers. Sir James concluded by saying thal in Shakespeare’s time 50 was considered almost advanced old age. “ Formerly. very many diseases were as mysterious as cancer is now. but thd mystery of cancer, too,, will disappear in time. Knowledge increases every year, and the not vefy far distant future, I think, is radiant with hope and bright with promise,” he added.