By Kemo
Cham
[First published on www.politicosl.com] A
United Nations experts’ investigation has revealed a worrying trend of cancer prevalence
in Sierra Leone, with an annual death rate of over 2, 000 people.
The
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) say estimated 3,000 people develop cancer each year in
the country which lacks the capacity and resources to diagnose or provide care
for victims. Much of the cancer cases in the country are preventable or curable
if discovered early, the agency said as part of the findings of an assessment
conducted last month.
Cancer refers to a group of diseases that result from abnormal growth
of body cells. Some of these are caused by nuclear radiation.
The IAEA, the UN agency that coordinates global efforts to ensure cooperation
in the nuclear field, seeks to promote the safe, secure and peaceful use of
nuclear technologies in this regard. In December an IAEA team embarked on a mission to
review Sierra Leone’s cancer control capacity at the request of the government
with the goal of providing recommendations ahead of the creation of a national
cancer control strategy.
The
mission, known as imPACT reviews, is usually the first step a member state is
expected to take to understand the scope of its cancer burden, which is crucial
in the development of a national cancer control strategy.
The
delegation, comprising
international cancer experts drawn from the IAEA, the World Health
Organization, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer, visited both
public and private healthcare facilities, medical schools and met with health
organizations to assess the key areas of cancer control: prevention, early
diagnosis, treatment and palliative care along with cancer planning, data
collection and the safe application of radiation medicine with regard to health
workers and patients.
The
findings reveal that majority of cancer patients in Sierra Leone seek medical
attention when their illness is far advanced or at an incurable stage because
of limited access to early diagnostic services.
They experts
also found that there were no radiotherapy services in the country and that the
provision of other modalities of cancer treatment, such as surgical oncology or
chemotherapy, was hampered by a severe lack of human resources and medical
equipment.
“This
limited access to cancer care services, including qualified staff, means that
patients have poor chances of survival if they develop the disease,” the IAEA said.
It is
hoped that the experts’ recommendations will guide the government in its effort
to prioritize cancer control interventions which will include facilitating
collaboration among the relevant organizations involved in the sector.
The
experts also recommended development of a comprehensive cancer control plan,
including necessary palliative services with relevant training for health care
professionals to make sure patients receive effective pain relief.
Breast
and cervical cancers top the list as the most prevalent cancer diseases in
Sierra Leone.
The imPACT Assessment tour of the IAEA experts was
part of the Sierra Leone government’s renewed drive to strengthen its cancer control
programme to meet the growing demands of citizens suffering from the illness,
according to the Ministry of Health.
In line with this, the government is also set to
deploy for the first time a radiotherapy and nuclear medicine service in the
country with support from the IAEA.
Sierra
Leone's Chief Medical Officer, Dr BrimaKargbo, categorized cancer as a public
health emergency and stressed the government’s commitment to deploying the required
resources to address the situation.
He also spoke
about the need for a national cancer control steering committee to develop the
national cancer control plan.
"Cancer
is one of the leading causes of death in the country and must be treated as a
public health emergency, like any other disease concerning the public's
health," he said, adding: "We must immediately establish the necessary
structures to address this as a priority."
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