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. 2019 Mar 21;14(3):e0213583.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0213583. eCollection 2019.

How many roads must a Malaysian walk down? Mapping the accessibility of radiotherapy facilities in Malaysia

Noorazrul Yahya  1 , Nur Khalis Sukiman  1 , Nani Adilah Suhaimi  1 , Nor Aniza Azmi  1 , Hanani A Manan  2
Affiliations

How many roads must a Malaysian walk down? Mapping the accessibility of radiotherapy facilities in Malaysia

Noorazrul Yahya et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Background: The accessibility to radiotherapy facilities may affect the willingness to undergo treatment. We sought to quantify the distance and travel time of Malaysian population to the closest radiotherapy centre and to estimate the megavoltage unit (MV)/million population based on the regions.

Materials & methods: Data for subdistricts in Malaysia and radiotherapy services were extracted from Department of Statistics Malaysia and Directory of Radiotherapy Centres (DIRAC). Data from DIRAC were validated by direct communication with centres. Locations of radiotherapy centres, distance and travel time to the nearest radiotherapy were estimated using web mapping service, Google Map.

Results: The average distance and travel time from Malaysian population to the closest radiotherapy centre were 82.5km and 83.4mins, respectively. The average distance and travel were not homogenous; East Malaysia (228.1km, 236.1mins), Central (14.4km, 20.1mins), East Coast (124.2km, 108.8mins), Northern (42.9km, 42.8mins) and Southern (36.0km, 39.8mins). The MV/million population for the country is 2.47, East Malaysia (1.76), Central (4.19), East Coast (0.54), Northern (2.40), Southern (2.36). About 25% of the population needs to travel >100 km to get to the closest radiotherapy facility.

Conclusion: On average, Malaysians need to travel far and long to reach radiotherapy facilities. The accessibility to radiotherapy facilities is not equitable. The disparity may be reduced by adding centres in East Malaysia and the East Coast.

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Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Regions in Malaysia and location of radiotherapy centres.
The map was derived from a map available in Public Domain (CIA Maps, www.cia.gov).
Fig 2
Fig 2. Average distance and travel time to the closest radiotherapy facility and to the closest government/ public university facility in Malaysia and in its regions.
Fig 3
Fig 3
Percentage of population and a) the travel distance (km) and b) travel time (mins).
Fig 4
Fig 4
a) Number of MV units in Malaysia and its regions. b) MV units/million of population in Malaysia and in its regions.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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