On World Cancer Day, the national consultant in medical oncology, Prof. Dr. Asen Dudov, called for a stronger focus on prevention and early diagnosis as key weapons against oncological diseases.
„Cancer is not one disease, but over 200 different diseases. But when detected in time, it is very often completely curable“, emphasized Prof. Dudov.
According to him, modern medicine already considers cancer as a genetic disease, the result of spontaneous mutations in cells.
„After the sequencing of the human genome in 2000, the understanding of cancer biology changed radically. This has also led to the development of personalized therapies targeting specific biomarkers," the oncologist explained in the program "Face to Face" on BTV.
Despite modern treatment, the mortality rate from cancer in our country remains among the highest in Europe. The reason, according to Prof. Dudov, is the late detection of the disease.
“A quarter of cases in our country are diagnosed at an advanced stage. While in countries with systematic screening there is talk of eradicating some types of cancer, we have not yet started,“ he said.
The oncologist emphasized that screening is not prevention, but a national policy for “screening“ healthy people in risk age groups - for example, breast, cervical, prostate and colon cancer.