The experience of
partner countries such as Brazil and the United States is a source of
inspiration and a challenge for future strategies for early diagnosis of
cancer, declared Mozambique’s first lady, Isaura Nyusi, on Tuesday.Speaking in
Maputo at a meeting on cancer prevention through mobile units, drawing on the
experience of the Barretos Cancer Hospital in Brazil, Nyusi said “through the
experience of its partners, Mozambique wishes to strengthen and consolidate the
coordination of efforts between health professionals in the country linked to
clinical practice and to research”.Nyusi said that cases of cancer are on the
increase – notably cervical and breast cancer among women and prostate cancer
and Kaposi’s sarcoma among men. Cancers frequently diagnosed in children are leukemia
and Kaposi’s sarcoma. “This situation is worsened by the HIV/AIDS epidemic
which affects 11.5 per cent of the adult population, and favours the
development and worsening of some cancers”, added the First Lady. This is
particularly the case with Kaposi’s sarcoma. This is a tumour, usually on the
skin and mouth, which became so common among HIV-positive men in the 1980s as
to become a marker for AIDS.Cervical and breast cancer are major concerns for
women’s health in Mozambique, stressed Nyusi. A pilot study is now underway in
three provinces to demonstrate the acceptability of the human papillomavirus
(HPV) vaccine in treating cervical cancer. In many other countries the vaccine
has proved highly effective in preventing this form of cancer.Screening for
cervical cancer and early treatment of the lesions have now been expanded to
more health units, she added. Mozambique is taking a “multi-disciplinary approach”
to improve the institutional capacity to respond to cancer, relying on support
from partner institutions which have provided capacity building for Mozambican
staff, including through video-conferences and technical visits. Among the
challenges the health service faces, Isaura Nyusi added, is the need to
mobilise more resources to strengthen the diagnosis and early treatment of
cancer, in order to avoid preventable deaths.
0 comentários:
Post a Comment