BEIRUT, Oct 5 (NNN-NNA) – Lebanese Health Minister, Jamil Jabak, said, the number of cancer patients in Lebanon has increased by threefold in the past 15 years due to pollution, local media reported.
“We hope that officials work hard on reducing the risks of getting exposed to cancer, by dealing properly with pollution,” Jabak was quoted as saying.
Jabak said that, his ministry decided to support the Children’s Cancer Centre directly, by allocating more money for this purpose in the 2019 state budget.
“We will allocate a higher amount in the 2020 state budget,” he said.
The most common reasons for cancer in Lebanon are air pollution, waste burning, and water contamination.
The World Health Organisation estimated that over 17,000 new cancer cases were discovered in Lebanon in 2018.
