6th, 7th deaths in Japan linked to new flu confirmed

TOKYO, Aug. 29 Kyodo -
A female cancer patient in her 60s in Kagoshima Prefecture and a 38-year-old
woman in Hyogo Prefecture with no apparent underlying illness died early
Saturday, becoming the sixth and seventh deaths in Japan linked to the new H1N1
strain of influenza A.
The cause of death of the younger woman is not known, but the Health, Labor and
Welfare Ministry said her death does not constitute a case in which a fully
healthy person died due to the infection, apparently in an attempt to brush
aside public concern about the ongoing epidemic.
The woman with a history of epilepsy who attended a facility for disabled
people in Tatsuno, Hyogo Prefecture, died at a hospital in Himeji in the
prefecture, Himeji city officials said.
The other woman from Makurazaki, Kagoshima, was suffering from cancer in her
digestive system and the tumor had spread to her lungs after she underwent
surgery, Kagoshima prefectural government officials said.
==Kyodo