Sindh govt to continue support cancer hospitals working on welfare basis: CM Sindh

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that the treatment of cancer patients was very costly and unaffordable for the poor patients in the private sector, therefore his government was working hard to establish cancer health facilities in the public sector and was also subsidizing treatment expenditures in the hospitals being operated as welfare institutions.

This he said on Tuesday while talking to a delegation of Cancer Foundation led by its Chairman Maqsood Ansari, said a statement.

Engineer Haji Nazim and Surgeon Abid Jamal were other members of the delegation while Principal Secretary to CM Sajid Jamal Abro and Secretary Health Saeed Awan also attended the meeting.

The CM Sindh was told that there was a requirement of 40 Radiation machines in Karachi but hardly there were few. Therefore,  the patients were waiting for one to two months in welfare hospitals.

The chief minister said that his government in partnership with philanthropist and JPMC administration has established Cyber Knife Center for cancer patients at JPMC.

Syed Murad Ali Shah said that his government was also financially supporting to various health facilities engaged in serving poor patients with the support of philanthropists.

He assured the Cancer Foundation his support in purchase of Bonemaro Transplant (BMT) machines. The BMT machine installed in Down hospital was a great support to the poor patients, he added.

In the meeting it was pointed out that the treatment of a poor cancer patient cost around Rs 1.2 million in private hospitals. These expenditures were beyond the approach of the poor patients.

Therefore, the welfare hospitals with the support of the philanthropists and Sindh government were subsidizing up to Rs 200,000, even then it was difficult for poor patients to afford.

It was also disclosed that the private hospitals were charging Rs 7000 for radiation while these expenditures were again subsidized up to Rs 1000 in welfare hospitals.

The chief minister directed the Secretary Health and Cancer Foundation to meet with secretary finance and purchase some radiation machines for poor cancer patients.

We are committed with the people of the province and would provide them free of cost treatment to the cancer patients, he said and added the on the pattern of NICVD, cancer hospitals would be established in different districts of Sindh.