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2007-7-16 19:25:23 |
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Eating raw freshwater fish increases risk of liver cancer, according to Thai researchers who published their finding in the latest issue of the Public Library of Science journal PLoS Medicine. The problem is with parasitic worms known as fluke, which infect rivers in rural parts of Southeast Asia including Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, Korea and China. When infected raw fish is eaten, the fluke infect the eater and damage his liver, increasing risk of developing liver cancer years later without obvious symptoms. Liver cancer is highly fatal. It is often diagnosed in its most advanced stage and patients once diagnosed often die in 6 to 12 months. The 5-year survival rate is almost zero. "Less than 1 percent who are infected with fluke will get liver cancer, but those who get infected are in the millions in Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. There are 6 million (infected with fluke) in Thailand," Reuters quoted Banchob Sripa from Thailand's northern Khon Kaen University as saying. Banchob has studied the link between fluke and liver cancer for almost 20 years. He said fluke attack the bile duct and trigger a "cytokine storm" -- an immune response that is strong enough to destroy not only the parasites, but the normal tissues as well. He said fluke damage the surface epithelium of the bile duct and cause ulcers. The inflammation triggered by the parasites can lead to the development of liver cancer later on. |
