Breast cancer (BC) is the leading cause of cancer mortality in Pakistan and other South Asian countries. Recent statistics indicate an increased risk of BC incidence and mortality among women in this region. Many factors have been associated with increased mortality from this disease including late detection due to inadequate knowledge of screening, and financial constraints due to which many women do not undergo screening tests. Other causes that have led to the deterioration of the disease status among females include a lack of public knowledge of BC's symptoms and misconceptions taking root from cultural reasons. This situation has called into question the effectiveness of BC awareness campaigns, as they may not have achieved the desired results that were originally envisioned. In this paper, we highlight the shortcomings of the awareness campaigns in Pakistan: lack of BC knowledge, financial constraints, and inaccessible healthcare facilities; and suggest alternatives for reducing breast cancer incidence and mortality.

Objective: To improve the understanding of the etiology of perforated peptic ulcers (PPUs) and their association with cancer development.

Design: Patients with (n = 303) and without (n = 119) PPU underwent human leukocyte antigen (HLA) testing. PPU risk factors, including human endogenous retrovirus-derived peptides, and the incidence and recurrence of PPUs and cancers after acid-suppressive therapy were examined.

Results: Patients with PPUs were younger than those without PPUs and more likely to have duodenal ulcers, consume alcohol, and smoke. Among 422 peptic ulcers, 31 (7.3%) developed cancers 1 year later. Patients with perforations who underwent partial gastrectomy and those who received medication showed a significantly reduced risk of cancer (χ² test, p < 0.0001, p < 0.0001, and p < 0.0001, respectively). Patients carrying HLA-Cw1 or -Cw7 showed a significantly reduced risk of PPU, except for those carrying HLA-Cw1 in the peptide K group (χ² test, p = 0.016). Patients carrying HLA-Cw3 in subgroup Hc showed a significantly reduced risk of cancer development. The HLA-Cw1 and -Cw1 heterotypes of peptide subgroup Ad showed a significantly reduced risk of recurrence (log-rank test, p = 0.007 and p = 0.02, respectively), whereas the HLA-Cw7 heterotypes of peptide subgroups Aa–Ac and group C showed a significantly increased risk of recurrence (log-rank test, p = 0.036 and p = 0.047, respectively), with the exception of patients in peptide group B (log-rank test, p = 0.012).

Conclusion: HLA-Cw1 and -Cw7 and their heterozygotes protected against PPU development, whereas HLA-Cw3 reduced cancer development.

Purpose: Breast and lung cancers are the most diagnosed cancers worldwide. This study aims to compare the impact of breast and lung cancer on survivors’ quality of life in the medium term.

Methods: Three hundred-four breast cancer survivors and seventy-seven lung cancer survivors were recruited between May 2019 and September 2020. Thus, EORTC QLQ- C30, EORTC QLQ- BR23, EORTC QLQ- LC13, and the Living Conditions Questionnaires were used as assessment tools.

Results: The health status of breast cancer survivors was significantly better than the health status of lung cancer survivors. The adverse effects of the disease on the sexual relationship were more often formulated by lung cancer survivors than by survivors of breast cancer (70% vs. 55%, P = 0.050). Second, they found living on a monthly income more challenging after the disease diagnosis than the breast cancer survivors (80% vs. 66%, P = 0.006).

Conclusion: All items of the EORTC-QLQ-C30 for both cancers showed a statistically significant difference, except for emotional function. The quality of life, physical functioning, and all symptoms in lung cancer survivors were worse than in breast cancer survivors.