By Listowell Yesu Bukarson
The Chief Executive Officer of American-based Non- governmental Organization (NGO), Unlimited Cancer Care International, Agivert Jackson, has called for a holistic approach toward the fight against cancers through educational institutions in Ghana.
The US-based Ghanaian believes that one of the avenues for educating the public, especially women on the need to take good care of their breasts so as to avoid contracting any form of cancers, is in educational intuitions, especially in the tertiary institutions.
Miss Jackson was reacting to the passing of the fourth-year medical student, Rita Adjoa Tandoh Abodoh, who sadly lost her life to a malignant tumor on her right pelvic and cancer related complications even after she reportedly underwent a successful surgery in Ghana.
Whiles commending the frantic efforts of the medical team who reportedly invested time and expertise to resuscitate the life of the budding and promising medical doctor to no avail, Miss Jackson believes that it is important to be proactive and not reactive because cancers are deadly, especially when the diagnosis are made later than expected.
“Even though Ghana has lost such am ambitious young lady to this disease, I commend the team of doctors who invested hours in the theatre in an attempt to save our sister Rita’s life” she said, adding that, “there is the need for stakeholders in the health sector to up their game in their sensitization programmes in the area of cancers on how to identify the symptoms early enough so as to prevent people, especially women from contracting the disease.
“As we may be aware, when the symptoms are identified early, it’s very easy to put up the right medical measures to deal with the situation instead of investing a great deal of man-hours and huge sums of money to try to heal a patient. Worse of it all, the insatiable ordeal and the excruciating pain the patients endure whiles taking treatment are unbearable,” she intimated.
The CEO of Unlimited Cancer Care International added that, her non-governmental and non-political cancer-related organization and its partners have taken it upon themselves to collaborate with like-minded institutions in Ghana to help in the fight against all forms of cancers.
She said, “Even though we are based here in the US, the focus for our engagements is to support institutions, individuals and government agencies in the campaign against this disease, especially breast cancers in the country.”
Agivert Jackson noted that, “As a Ghanaian from one of the most deprived communities; I can understand that many of our women in the country, mostly in the hinterland, lack the requisite know-how on how to check for symptoms about especially breast cancer. Many, even when they contract it, can’t raise the needed financial demands to get better medical treatments in their fights for survival.”
“So as they say, it is important not to put the cart before the horse when it comes to medical conditions, especially when it’s about cancers.”
Miss Jackson expressed her empathy and that of Unlimited Cancer Care International to the family of Rita, her colleagues and lecturers at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, as well as friends on her painful demise.
“To the family, doctors who spent precious time on trying to save Rita’s life, colleagues and lectures at KNUST who kept Rita in prayers, as well as friends who have been affected by her death, we send our sincere condolences,” Miss Jackson said.
