KARACHI – Pediatricians and oncologists on Tuesday recommended allocation of a regular specific amount under Baitul Maal funds for the treatment of children suffering from different forms of cancers in the country. The suggestion was forwarded at a seminar organised at the Children Cancer Hospital on the International Childhood Cancer Day on Tuesday.
“The efforts under way to contain infant mortality caused due to conditions such as diarrhoea and acute respiratory infections also need to include cancer,” said Pakistan Paediatric Association President Dr Khalid Zuberi. The speakers were unanimous that outreach networking must be promoted on strong grounds to enhance professional capacities of general physicians in the remote areas.
“They must be trained to pick up cases with the capability to diagnose and refer to a dedicated cancer treatment facility,” Zuberi said. Senior paediatric oncologist Dr Shamvil Ashraf said an estimated 7,000 children are registered with one or the other type of cancers in the country, yet a small percentage of them receive active treatment protocol, adding, “The scenario has put the rate of active survival at the national level at a mere 25 percent.”
Unavailability of qualified professionals to handle cancer cases, coupled with financial constraints prevents these children from receiving timely treatments on regular basis until recovery, Ashraf said. With specific reference to patient turnover at the cancer hospital in Karachi, he said that 15 percent of the patients reach the hospitals at far too advanced stages of the diseases.
The other 15 percent are lost during follow-ups, as parents fail to bear the treatment expenses or are unable to ensure regular visits due to travelling distance, he added. A significant number of children are referred to the three hospitals in Karachi from interior Sindh and Balochistan. “There is also no dearth of those children who are never diagnosed with the cancers,” said the senior oncologist.
Paediatric haematologist and oncologist Dr Zehra Fadoo said that most of the cancers among children are mainly genetic in nature and may not be largely preventable yet hold no less than 60 percent chances of active survival. “Unexplained and prolonged pain and headache, often with vomiting, sudden change in balance and behaviour must not be overlooked as they can be precursors to the ailment,” said the oncologist.
She urged the parents not to ignore symptoms such as persistent and unexplained fever, unusual abdominal mass or swelling, loss of energy and rapid weight loss in the children. The speakers also recommended the formation of ‘parent groups’, under which parents capable of providing technical and financial support must collaborate with doctors and coordinate with other parents to enhance their capabilities to handle children suffering from ailments.
The session was also addressed by Tariq Shafi, a local philanthropist and one of the trustees of the Children Cancer Hospital. Some of the parents also shared their experiences and discussed the problems faced by them. Doctors from Aga Khan University, National Institute of Child Health, Children Cancer Hospital and caretakers of child patients also attended the programme.
