Government urged to come up with program for COPD

MANILA, Philippines - A lung expert has asked the government to come up with a comprehensive program on chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), saying that cases are not only rising but sufferers could also be getting younger.

According to Dr. Teresita de Guia, head of the Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the Philippine Heart Center, there is no program in the country that specifically targets COPD despite the huge impact it poses on country’s economy and on a sufferer due to lost work productivity and health expenses.

“Awareness about COPD is very low in the Philippines. But with what happened to Dolphy, many people are becoming interested. We have been receiving many inquiries both from our patients and from others who are curious about COPD,” she said in a press conference organized in Seoul, Korea by Takeda Pharmaceuticals (Asia Pacific) Pte Ltd.

De Guia said comedian Dolphy has been suffering from COPD for a long time.

She said the primary cause of COPD is smoking and with the rising number of Filipino smokers, it is likely that COPD patients may increase. Since Filipinos are getting addicted to smoking earlier, they are also more likely to develop COPD at a younger age, De Guia said.

 “Genetic disposition has something to do if a person develops COPD at a young age. But the problems can be aggravated if you smoke,” she added.