The Taipei Department of Health yesterday said that free health examinations and four types of cancer screening for eligible Taipei residents are scheduled to begin next month.
A total of 59 sessions of examinations, including basic physical assessment, biochemical and urine examinations, and cancer screening tests for cervical, colon, oral and breast cancer are to be held at 11 designated healthcare facilities and 12 district health centers, on weekends from Jan. 23 until August.
“A total of 4,903 Taipei residents died from cancer last year, which is an average of one cancer death every one hour and 45 minutes,” Health Promotion Division director Lin Meng-hui (林夢蕙) said.
Heart disease, cerebral vascular disease, diabetes and hypertensive heart disease are also among top 10 causes of death, so people need be conscious of their health, she said.
Of the 10,053 people that have participated in cancer screening tests this year, the abnormality rates were 1.21 percent for breast cancer, 2.57 percent for cervical cancer, 3.83 percent for colon cancer and 6.83 percent for oral cancer, Lin said.
National Taiwan University Department of Dentistry honorary professor Hahn Liang-jiunn (韓良俊) said the prevalence and death rate of oral cancer is increasing in men, with 174 deaths due to oral cancer in Taipei last year.
“Quitting betel nut, smoking and drinking is the most important way of preventing oral cancer,” he said, adding that having regular cancer screening tests can help discover the disease at an early stage, increasing the chances of curing it.
The health department said people can check its Web site, health.gov.taipei/, for detailed information on how to schedule an examination.
The Central Weather Administration (CWA) today issued a sea warning for Typhoon Fung-wong effective from 5:30pm, while local governments canceled school and work for tomorrow. A land warning is expected to be issued tomorrow morning before it is expected to make landfall on Wednesday, the agency said. Taoyuan, and well as Yilan, Hualien and Penghu counties canceled work and school for tomorrow, as well as mountainous district of Taipei and New Taipei City. For updated information on closures, please visit the Directorate-General of Personnel Administration Web site. As of 5pm today, Fung-wong was about 490km south-southwest of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan's southernmost point.
Tropical Storm Fung-Wong would likely strengthen into a typhoon later today as it continues moving westward across the Pacific before heading in Taiwan’s direction next week, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. As of 8am, Fung-Wong was about 2,190km east-southeast of Cape Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost point, moving westward at 25kph and possibly accelerating to 31kph, CWA data showed. The tropical storm is currently over waters east of the Philippines and still far from Taiwan, CWA forecaster Tseng Chao-cheng (曾昭誠) said, adding that it could likely strengthen into a typhoon later in the day. It is forecast to reach the South China Sea
Almost a quarter of volunteer soldiers who signed up from 2021 to last year have sought early discharge, the Legislative Yuan’s Budget Center said in a report. The report said that 12,884 of 52,674 people who volunteered in the period had sought an early exit from the military, returning NT$895.96 million (US$28.86 million) to the government. In 2021, there was a 105.34 percent rise in the volunteer recruitment rate, but the number has steadily declined since then, missing recruitment targets, the Chinese-language United Daily News said, citing the report. In 2021, only 521 volunteers dropped out of the military, the report said, citing
Nearly 5 million people have signed up to receive the government’s NT$10,000 (US$322) universal cash handout since registration opened on Wednesday last week, with deposits expected to begin tomorrow, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. After a staggered sign-up last week — based on the final digit of the applicant’s national ID or Alien Resident Certificate number — online registration is open to all eligible Taiwanese nationals, foreign permanent residents and spouses of Taiwanese nationals. Banks are expected to start issuing deposits from 6pm today, the ministry said. Those who completed registration by yesterday are expected to receive their NT$10,000 tomorrow, National Treasury
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