More than 630,000 cancer patients received treatment under Thailand’s universal healthcare scheme in the 2025 fiscal year, with breast cancer remaining the most common cancer among women and colorectal cancer topping the list among men.
Of the 633,866 cancer patients treated during the fiscal year that ended on Sept 30 last year, 247,608 or 39.1% were were newly diagnosed cases, said Dr Jadej Thammatacharee, secretary-general of the National Health Security Office (NHSO).
The figures underscore cancer’s impact as one of the country’s major public health challenges and highlight the need for comprehensive care covering all stages of treatment, Dr Jadej said.
The NHSO manages the universal coverage scheme, which provides healthcare coverage to 47 million people.
Among outpatient services in fiscal 2025, breast cancer recorded the highest number of patients, with 92,966 people receiving treatment over 683,717 visits.
It was followed by colorectal cancer with 44,489 patients, rectal cancer (29,482), liver and bile duct cancer (26,591), and lung and bronchial cancer (26,416).
For inpatient care, liver and bile duct cancer ranked first, with 20,312 patients accounting for 44,230 hospital admissions.
Colorectal cancer followed with 18,644 patients, ahead of breast cancer (17,910), lung and bronchial cancer (16,107) and rectal cancer (14,394).
Dr Jadej said the information not only reflects the scale of cancer treatment provided under the universal healthcare scheme but also serves as a resource for national health planning.
