TANZNAIA – KCMC Zonal Referral Hospital in Moshi, Tanzania has kicked off a cancer campaign aimed at preventing prostate cancer-related deaths along with increasing awareness of cervical cancer treatment and prevention.
Prostate cancer occurs when some of the cells in the prostate gland reproduce more rapidly than normal resulting in a tumor that if left untreated, prostate cancer cells eventually spread from the prostate and invade distant parts of the body.
The main prostate cancer symptoms include blood in the urine or semen, bone pain, erectile dysfunction, weak urine flow and painful urination.
It is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in men in Tanzania as most prostate cancers develop without men experiencing any symptoms in the early stages and most cancer patients are diagnosed when their diseases are at advanced stages.
Subsequently, KCMC Zonal Referral Hospital has launched a cancer campaign for men to conduct prostate cancer screening along with discussions on benefits of screening to know their Prostate-Specific Antigen level as early detection will ensure survival of the patient.
The Moshi-based Referral Hospital will be offering free of charge prostate cancer indicators examinations services conducted through blood screening and ultrasound along with bringing education and counselling services related to the disease closer to residents.
The governmental hospital under the Tanzanian Ministry of Health is carrying out the health initiative through its clinical research arm named Kilimanjaro Clinical Research Institute (KCRI) in collaboration with the Moshi Municipal Council.
Prostate cancer specialist at the KCMC hospital Dr Nicolaus Ngowi noted that more than 90 per cent of more than 100 patients who went to KCMC and diagnosed with the prostate cancer, were in serious condition making it difficult for them to get complete treatment.
“This is what led to KCMC Zonal Referral Hospital and Kilimanjaro Clinical Research Institute experts to conduct researches that led to experts deciding to leave their offices and follow the targeted audience in an effort to complement government’s efforts to save their lives,” explained Dr Nicolaus Ngowi.
Dr Nicolaus stated that the studies conducted in 2015/2016 with an aim to improve health services in the country showed that 5 per cent of deaths in Tanzania were caused by prostate cancer making it the sixth leading killer disease.
He further said that KCRI partnered with the Urology Unit at KCMC to look on how to launch the campaign with the aim of reaching more patients so that they can get proper education, get tested and eventually be diagnosed with appropriate treatment.
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