Havana, July 24 (RHC-ACN)-- The Institute of Oncology and Radiobiology (INOR) in Havana has recently acquired state-of-the-art equipment to fight cancer, which is a major cause of death in Cuba, preceded only by heart disease.

Dr. Luís Curbelo, director of INOR, told the Cuban News Agency that in Cuba there is a rise in malignant tumors, whose incidence is currently 22,000 annually, and about 18 thousand Cubans die each year.

Among the new equipment, which has already been put into operation, is the multi-source HDR (high frequency) Brachytherapy unit which provides very localized radiation, and protects healthy organs.

INOR, the center designated by the Ministries of Public Health and Science, Technology and Environment for research in cancer, currently has more than 40 research projects, and 27 clinical trials, of the latter, eight international, in close relation with other scientific institutions in the country.