In rural China, where about 41 percent of the population lives, only about one-fifth of cancer patients survive five years past their diagnosis. In urban areas, about 40 percent survive, according to China’s National Cancer Prevention and Research Center. Tang Gongwei’s disappearance was widely reported in the Chinese media, with some outlets mistakenly saying that he was a doctor. “At least if you gave birth to a girl, you were allowed to have another one,” she said. China’s one-child policy allowed rural residents to have a second child if the first one was a girl, unlike their counterparts living in urban areas.

Source: New York Times August 20, 2018 18:30 UTC