RIYADH: Health Minister Khalid Al-Falih will launch a comprehensive awareness campaign against cancer in GCC countries to mark the World Cancer Day on Sunday.

Announcing the launch of the campaign, Director General of the Executive Bureau of the Council of Health Ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council Tawfiq Khoja said that Al-Falih will launch the program in his capacity as the Chairman of the 40th Session of the Council of Health Ministers of the Gulf Cooperation Council.

Khoja said that this week's program will be held in conjunction with the countries of the world to mark the International Day of Cancer which falls on Feb. 4 every year.

He noted that the campaign aims to raise awareness about the risk factors leading to cancer and to encourage protection from the environment (water, food and air) and public health. “It will also raise the level of health awareness about early detection of cancer and its importance in improving the chances of recovery and activation of national programs to fight cancer,” he added.

He said the campaign is launched under the slogan (40/40) on the basis of scientific evidence, which indicates that 40 percent of cancers can be prevented, and 40 percent of other cancers can be cured if diagnosed early and treated immediately.

The official pointed out that the importance of this campaign stems from the global interest in this disease since it is the No. 1 killer and also affects individuals and societies.

The incidence of cancer was estimated to be more than 14 million patients in 2012 and it is expected to increase to nearly 21 million patients by 2030.

Among GCC countries, there were 119,000 cases of cancer registered between January 1998 and December 2009. The number is expected to double over the next 10 years due to changing lifestyles, increasing indicators of the excessive use of tobacco, obesity, lack of physical activity, and other environmental causes.

World Cancer Day is a unique opportunity to raise awareness that there is much that can be done at an individual, community and governmental level, to harness and mobilize these solutions and catalyze positive change.

The campaign will be carried out on a positive and proactive approach to fight cancer, highlighting that solutions do exist across the GCC region and that they are within the reach of the people.

The campaign will explore the ways of implementing what is already known in the areas of prevention, early detection, treatment and care.