Cancer is the leading cause of death among children in developed countries. Due to a lack of precise data, however, the death rate of children with cancer is unknown in Pakistan, said Dr Barkat Hooda, assistant professor and consultant paediatric haematologist and oncologist at the Paediatrics Department, Aga Khan University Hospital (Akuh).
He made these observations while giving a presentation on 'Cancers in Children'- signs, symptoms and care, a monthly public health awareness programme, held on July 3, 2004, in Karachi.
Akuh's health awareness programmes started in 1993 with the objective to increase awareness of early diagnosis and timely treatment of diseases. So far, some 160 programmes have been organised in Karachi, Hyderabad, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, attracting and benefiting over 33,000 participants.
Dr Hooda discussed various misconceptions about cancer, particularly its prognosis. Stressing that diagnosis of cancer does not necessarily mean a death sentence for the child, he said, adding: "The survival rate for children with cancer in developed countries has substantially increased in the last two decades, and 70 percent of children with the malignant disorder survive."
Dr Hooda was of the view that a similar survival rate can be replicated in Pakistan by setting up cancer centres with a multi-disciplinary team approach and through institutions working at a national level
The speaker and the panellists, Dr Zafar Nazir, associate professor and Paediatric Surgery Section head at AKU; and Dr Zebra Fadoo, assistant professor, Department of Paediatrics, AKU. participated in the question-and-answer session at the end of the programme.
Over 70 percent of patients treated at Akuh come from low- to middle-income areas. Since the inception of the Hospital's Patient Welfare Programme in 1986, over Rs 1.05 billion has been disbursed among more than 200,000 needy patients. In addition, the Patients' Behind Society for Akuh also disburses Zakat contributions to the financially disadvantaged.-PR
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