Cancer experts meet in Washington

From Yaa Oforiwah Asare-Peasah

Washington, July 10, GNA -- More than 5,500 international cancer and tobacco control experts and volunteers from about 130 countries including Ghana are meeting in Washington DC to address the global cancer and tobacco burden and the projected increase in cancer deaths worldwide.

Cancer, according to experts occurs in about 200 types of diseases making a complexity of the cancer story especially in Africa, which accounts for at least 65 per cent of the approximately seven million deaths worldwide.

Records in Ghana are scattered as experts try to build the database but some of the well known reported cases include lung, prostrate, cervical, breast, stomach, liver, oesophageal (oesophagus) and leukaemia - common among children according to hospital sources. The weeklong programme covering the two conferences: The World Cancer Congress, July 8-12 being immediately followed by the 13th World Conference on Tobacco aims at discussing tobacco control and the attending cancer menace.

The meetings are being jointly organised by the International Union against Cancer (UICC); The American Cancer Society (ACS) and the European School of Oncology under the themes: Bridging the Gap: Transforming knowledge into Action and "Building Capacity for a Tobacco-Free World for the Cancer Congress and the Tobacco Conference, respectively. The cancer congress seeks to bring together, governments, health professionals and cancer NGOs in the creation of national cancer plans that would promote a worldwide comprehensive and anti-cancer strategy, share information and make commitments and to serve as the launching point for worldwide action in transforming state of the science into state of practice based on the economic implications of application strategies among other issues.

Former US President George H.W. Bush and his wife Barbara were some of the high profile personalities that addressed the opening ceremony on Saturday night.

Mr Bush, who lost a child to cancer 53 years ago, told the delegates, "Maybe one of the reasons I am so devoted to the cancer cause is because I know this is one fight we can win and will win. We simply cannot expect to hold back the growing worldwide epidemic of cancer on a less than a shoestring budget".

The Bushs lost their second child Robin at age three drawing much of their attention to cancer control.

Mrs Bush said: "Our interest in cancer began with the loss of our loved one", because when the doctor told us our little girl had leukaemia, we were shocked as we barely knew the disease." She, however, praised the advances in cancer knowledge and the possibilities for treatment and encouraged the professionals and other stakeholders in the cancer control programmes to intensify activities for better results.

Side attractions at both meetings include photo exhibitions of cancer care and medical advances in cancer research, management and treatment.

The WHO office in Ghana, The Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital and the National Health Research Unit of the Ghana Health Service (GHS) are participating in the photo exhibition while Professor Agyemang Badu Akosa, Director General of the GHS and Dr Baffour Awuah, a Ghanaian Specialist Radiation Oncologist are presenting papers.