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Ghana commemorates 2015 World Cancer Day

Xinhua, February 5, 2015 Adjust font size:

Ghana joined the rest of the international community Wednesday to commemorate the 2015 World Cancer Day.

The Day is celebrated on February 4 every year to raise awareness on the various cancers and to advocate global action to control the cancer epidemic.

The theme for this year's commemoration is "Cancer: Not Beyond us".

It highlights the efforts that individuals, communities, governments and other stakeholders can make in the prevention and control of cancer.

Cancer is the leading cause of death globally and the top killer among the non-communicable diseases (NCD's) which are the major focus of the WHO and UN.

The burden of cancer in Ghana has been on the increase over the few decades due to aging, rapid urbanization and unhealthy lifestyle.

According to recent estimates, about 16,000 new cases of cancer occur in Ghana yearly, with the majority of them presenting very late, leading to high death rates.

In Ghana, patients visit traditional healers and spiritualists and usually come for medical care when the disease has advanced.

Addressing the delegates, the deputy minister of Health, Dr. Victor Asare Bampoe, stressed the need for the citizenry to change their beliefs about cancer and seek early treatment to ensure better outcomes.

"In cancer management, early detection saves life and usually when cases are brought in late not much can be done. There are a lot of myths and misconceptions about cancer and we need to know the truth to better protect ourselves," he said.

The WHO Country Director, Magda Robalo, said many lives could be saved in Africa if appropriate investment was made in raising public awareness on the early signs and symptoms of common cancers.

She urged member-states in the WHO African region to ensure that the integrated non-communicable disease action plan addressed cancer prevention and control in a holistic and multi-sectorial manner.

"As we commemorate World Cancer Day, I call upon African governments to scale up access to cancer vaccines for cancer prevention, screening services for early detection of cancer and provision of treatment and palliative care services," she said.

It is known that 30 percent of cancers are potentially preventable if people live healthy lifestyles. Endi