Subsidies are being urged for sufferers (患者) of liver cancer after a study showed many of them just cannot afford treatment.
The poll of 300 respondents conducted by the Hong Kong Liver Cancer Foundation found 62 percent of them cannot afford to have a monthly check (檢查) on tumor (腫瘤) growth, costing about HK$10,000.
The survey also indicated 32 percent have already spent about HK$50,000 on treatment, while 13 percent have shelled out (note 1) more than $200,000.
Forty-three percent of respondents report household income (note 2) of less than HK$10,000 a month, foundation chairman Ronnie Poon Tung-ping said.
Poon, clinical professor of the University of Hong Kong's department of surgery, said about 1,700 people are diagnosed (斷症為) with liver cancer annually. The study also found 62 percent were hepatitis B carriers (note 3) before being diagnosed with liver cancer.
About 30 percent had cirrhosis (肝硬化) of the liver before found to have liver cancer. Only 16.5 percent did not have previous liver problems.
Poon said the cure rate was only 25.6 percent a decade ago, but has climbed to 42.4 percent now.
"The main reason is that there are more advanced tomography imaging systems (note 4), so patients are diagnosed earlier. The progress (進步、好轉) made on treatments is also a reason for the higher successful cure rate."
But Poon said government medical subsidy schemes such as the Community Care Fund and Samaritan Fund do not cover (包括) liver cancer medication, making it a huge burden (note 5) for the patients.
He said medication costs between HK$30,000 and HK$40,000 a month. For treatment to be effective, patients have to take the drugs for about a year, amounting to (note 6) nearly HK$500,000.
Poon urged the government to subsidize at least half the cost to liver cancer patients.
From good to better English:
(note 1) shell out=付出, 付款，捐獻 [To distribute (money) as payment]。shell out 的同義詞有disburse, expend, give, lay out, outlay, pay out, spend. fork out 等。as easy as shelling peas=非常容易。The shell of an egg=蛋殼。Julian comes out of her shell=Julian不再羞怯沈默。
(note 2) household income=家庭總入息。Household=家眷，家屬，家裡人；家庭，戶。The number of households=戶數。Household expenses=家庭開支。
(note 3) hepatitis B carriers=乙形肝炎帶菌者。Carrier=信差，郵差；送報人。Aircraft carrier=航空母艦。
(note 4) tomography imaging systems=斷層攝影影像系統。Tomo=一小段 (a section, a cutting)。 Image=形像，典型, 概念，意象；心象。Chris is the image of his father=Chris活像他父親。thinking in terms of images=形像思維。
(note 5) a huge burden=嚴重負擔。Huge=巨大的，龐大的，極大的。Burden=負擔，包袱, 責任。financial burden=財政上的負擔。 the burden of leadership=領導者的重任。burden of proof=【法律】舉證責任。
(note 6) amount to=總數。Amount=相當於，等於。Daisy’s answer amounts to a threat=Daisy的回答等於恐嚇。The gross amount= 約計，概數。
Victor’s View: It is heart-wrenching to see terminally-ill patients suffer just because they can’t afford the treatments. Why can’t we lend a hand and set up a special charity fund for them?
(Victor Fung Keung, director of HK Baptist University’s M.A. in international journalism program, has published 4 books on English-enhancement [the latest, titled <<學會演說、改變你的人生>>, was published on July 18] and plans to write 6 more by the end of 2012. Write to him: deanfungenglish@gmail.com)
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