Cancer information and consultation for patients with any kind of cancer is available through a new foundation launched yesterday, which also aims to address the predicaments of people afflicted with lesser-known cancers who often find themselves having nowhere to turn.
“There are more than 80 kinds of cancer [reported] in Taiwan, but only 16 of them have specific patient groups in which people with the disease can resort to for support and treatment information,” said Lin Wei-chieh (林葳婕), chairwoman of the newly founded Taiwan Association of Cancer Patients, at a news conference in Taipei.
Lin said the lack of variety of support groups means many individuals who are suffering from less common cancers are left stranded, with no one to help them fight for their medical rights.
Citing the example of a 71-year-old man surnamed Hu (胡) from Kaohsiung, Lin said that seven out of Hu’s eight family members were diagnosed with cancers, including liver, breast and thyroid cancers.
“Hu was diagnosed with skin cancer seven years ago, before coming down with four other types of cancer, including adenocarcinoma — a type of lung cancer — two years ago. However, he only managed to find one cancer patient support group matching his types of diseases for support,” Lin said.
The association was established because of the many cancer patients who had approached Lin to vent their frustration over being an orphan in the cancer patient community, and also because government officials said that they had trouble finding “representative voices” for people with certain cancers, Lin said.
One of the founding members of the association, Mental Health Association Taiwan director-general Chang Chueh (張玨), said she only realized how many tasks a cancer patient must take on after she was diagnosed with endometrial cancer several years ago.
“Thanks to rapid advances in medicine, patients can now live with cancers as a chronic disease rather than a death sentence. However, we as cancer patients not only require mutual support, but also a place in the government’s medical policymaking, which is one of the goals the association aims to achieve,” Chang said.
Lin said nearly 100 patients with dozens of different cancers have joined the association, which is to provide them with cancer information, spiritual growth classes and a platform to express their opinions and suggestions.
Trips for more than 100,000 international and domestic air travelers could be disrupted as China launches a military exercise around Taiwan today, Taiwan’s Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) said yesterday. The exercise could affect nearly 900 flights scheduled to enter the Taipei Flight Information Region (FIR) during the exercise window, it added. A notice issued by the Chinese Civil Aviation Administration showed there would be seven temporary zones around the Taiwan Strait which would be used for live-fire exercises, lasting from 8am to 6pm today. All aircraft are prohibited from entering during exercise, it says. Taipei FIR has 14 international air routes and
Taiwan lacks effective and cost-efficient armaments to intercept rockets, making the planned “T-Dome” interception system necessary, two experts said on Tuesday. The concerns were raised after China’s military fired two waves of rockets during live-fire drills around Taiwan on Tuesday, part of two-day exercises code-named “Justice Mission 2025.” The first wave involved 17 rockets launched at 9am from Pingtan in China’s Fujian Province, according to Lieutenant General Hsieh Jih-sheng (謝日升) of the Office of the Deputy Chief of the General Staff for Intelligence at the Ministry of National Defense. Those rockets landed 70 nautical miles (129.6km) northeast of Keelung without flying over Taiwan,
The Ministry of National Defense (MND) today released images of the military tracking China’s People's Liberation Army (PLA) movements during the latest round of Chinese drills around Taiwan. The PLA began "Justice Mission 2025" drills today, carrying out live-fire drills, simulated strikes on land and maritime targets, and exercises to blockade the nation's main ports. The exercises are to continue tomorrow, with the PLA announcing sea and air space restrictions for five zones around Taiwan for 10 hours starting from 8:30am. The ministry today released images showing a Chinese J-16 fighter jet tracked by a F-16V Block 20 jet and the
City buses in Taipei and New Taipei City, as well as the Taipei MRT, would on Saturday begin accepting QR code payments from five electronic payment providers, the Taipei Department of Transportation said yesterday. The new option would allow passengers to use the “transportation QR code” feature from EasyWallet, iPass Money, iCash Pay, Jkopay or PXPay Plus. Passengers should open their preferred electronic payment app, select the “transportation code” — not the regular payment code — unlock it, and scan the code at ticket readers or gates, General Planning Division Director-General Liu Kuo-chu (劉國著) said. People should move through the
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