Why Men More Susceptible to Liver Cancer than Women

Egyptian researcher Dr. Nourhan Hassan revealed reasons why men are more susceptible to liver cancer than women. A graduate from the Faculty of Science at Cairo University, Dr. Hassan earned her Master's degree in 2016 before heading to Germany to complete her doctorate.

During a telephonic interview on the "New Egypt" program with media personality Diaa Rashwan, broadcasted on "ETC" satellite channel, Dr. Hassan admitted that she initially desired to study Pharmacy. However, circumstances didn't favor her aspiration, leading her to remark, "I felt back then that high school was the end of the world, but I later realized that it was merely the beginning."

On the subject of liver cancer, she continued, "I worked hard in college, ranked among the top of my class, and was appointed as an assistant in the Biotechnology department. Then I finished my Master's and later my doctorate in Germany."

She elaborated, "Out of every ten men, it is likely that four may develop liver cancer. The percentage of men is higher than women for this disease. My Master's research was about the causes of this increased percentage in men. The study revealed that certain male hormones stimulate the onset of the disease."

She added, "I applied for the German Academic Exchange Service scholarship, funded by the Ministry of Higher Education. 150 researchers applied, and I was one of the lucky ones to win the scholarship."

Dr. Hassan noted that her doctorate thesis was about breast cancer, a disease that significantly affects women. The research proved that the efficiency of radiation therapy differs from one woman to another. "We found that a deficiency of a certain hormone within the cancer cell leads to reduced treatment efficiency. Thus, by external intervention, we can enhance the presence of this protein to yield promising results," she concluded.