Imo launches onslaught against cancer

Posted by admin Headlines, Imo, State News Friday, December 24th, 2010

PLANS are afoot in Imo State to halt the advances of cancer, one of the deadly diseases ravaging the world.

The state is focusing on women with a view to reducing its prevalence among them.
The wife of the governor, Mrs Chioma Ohakim disclosed this while declaring open a sensitisation and advocacy workshop on early cancer detection at the Family Support Programme (FSP) building, Mbari, in Owerri, the state capital.

The governor’s wife who was represented by the state Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Dame Anagam Ononuju, noted that the global health community is not winning the fight against the scourge and therefore called for intensified effort in this regard.

The governor’s wife stressed that breast and genital cancers still remain a global health problem with some low income countries like Nigeria being at the receiving end due to the poor attitude of the people to medical checkups and screening.

She regretted that late detection of cancer leads to difficulty in its treatment and expressed optimism that the workshop would provide an insight into its early detection.
Mrs Ohakim advised wives of local government chairmen and participants at the workshop to educate other rural women on the dangers of cancer to women.

In his remarks, the project manager, Imo Health System Development Project, Dr. Johnny Ihebereme, maintained that cancer has continued to pose a challenge to humanity especially women who, he noted, run the greater risk of contracting it
Dr. Ihebereme praised the wife of the governor for organising the workshop which he said, would educate women on the need to imbibe routine cancer screening especially cancer of the ovary which he described as a silent killer.

He also spoke on “Female Genital Tumours: Early detection and treatment”.
In their separate lectures on “breast self-examination” and “diagnosis of breast cancer and treatment,” Dr Okere and Dr Ken Anyanwu, both of the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, explained some of the factors that can lead to the development of cancer, pointing out that early detection will encourage its treatment and prevention.

Some of the participants thanked Mrs Ohakim for the workshop and pleaded that cancer screening and treatment be made free of charge in the state.

It would be recalled that the workshop was organised by the office of the wife of the governor in collaboration with her pet project, Empowerment for Women and Youth Initiative (EWAYI).wp_posts