Radiotherapy big challenge for treatment of cancers: Sapuri

Caption:  Dr Mathias Sapuri

By MATTHEW VARI

Sunday, September 27, 2015 (Sunday Chronicle, PNG)

RADIOTHERAPY is a big challenge in the country in effectively treating cancer patients.

Senior Gynecologists Dr Mathias Sapuri raised the issue when speaking to the media during the week regarding today’s annual Globeathon awareness walk hosted by the Pacific International Hospital (PIH) in Port Moresby.

He also added that it was time the country had two radiotherapy units, and not just the one which is the current case with the Lae radiotherapy unit.

“We have had problems with our radiotherapy unit in Lae and we hoped that in the near future something should be done to fix the issue,” Dr Sapuri said.

“For us a hospital in PIH we have what we call screening tools to identify and monitor treatment of cancers and our challenge now in our development would be radiotherapy machine at PIH.”

“It is something that we are thinking about and we hope that government should be thinking along that line and try and set up this important facility that will basically treat every Papua New Guinean who have cancers.”

He said that the issue was not just about women cancers (gynecological cancers), but also covers children cancers and all sorts of forms of cancers in the country.

“It is an important assessment of treatment modality (method) and it is important that leading institutions such as PIH and Port Moresby General Hospital have to take cancer care to the next level.”

“We have talked enough about symptoms and signs and campaign programs but we have to go into action. To me the next stage in cancer treatment development cancer care is to establish a Radiotherapy unit in Papua New Guinea that is of the latest standard and model so that we can treat cancers more effectively.”

“So with all the modalities together we can have surgery, chemotherapy, the only missing in an effective way is radiotherapy.”

“I think in this country by now we should have two radiotherapy facilities in this country. One could serve the public sector and the other could serve the private.”

He said both facilities will complement each other- something he said the National Government and those in the private sector could put their heads together in establishing.