Dubai: Zulekha Hospitals on Monday began a two-month free screening campaign at its Sharjah and Dubai branches to detect colorectal cancer.
Residents can make a free consultation appointment in Dubai and Sharjah by visiting http://crc.zulekhahospitals.com, or by calling 600524442.
The Screen and Survive campaign launched last year is in its second edition and is in line with the UAE’s 2021 goal of reducing cancer cases by 18 per cent and supporting the Year of Giving initiative this year.
The event’s ambassadors, Dr Adil Daud, Professor, Oncology Director from the University of California, and Dr Robert Warren, Professor of Surgery, Surgical Oncology at the University of California, were joined by Dr Muna Al Kuwari, Director of Specialised Healthcare Department, hospital sector at the Ministry of Health and Prevention and Dr Suad Hashim Ahmad, Consultant at Dubai Health Authority, among others.
Last year, the initiative successfully screened 148 participants detecting six positive results with a number of those staying on for treatment at Zulekha Hospital.
“Every year 8.8 million people die of cancer. A lot of these deaths could have been avoided if the right steps were taken early on,” said Taher Shams, Managing Director of Zulekha Hospitals. “With the proper education as well as the access to safe and effective treatment, we can catch the disease before it advances, potentially becoming fatal.”
Al Kuwari, said: “The Ministry of Health encourages the public and private sector health care institutions to take such initiatives that aim at making a difference to our communities in UAE and promote early detection and prevention of deadly diseases.”
Zanubia Shams, Co-Chairperson of Zulekha Hospitals, said: “Last year, we set out to break the taboos of talking about colorectal cancer, raising awareness of the disease and encouraging men and women to get screened early on to prevent it. However, colon cancer remains the second most common and fatal cancer in the UAE. And as such, it is imperative that we continue to spread awareness through these health care campaigns as they ultimately save lives.”
According to new guidance introduced by the World Health Organisation, public awareness is a necessary step to help detect cancer earlier and make sure patients have access to better and cheaper treatment.
This new campaign hopes to appeal to the local commmunity to understand the importance of screening and early detection.
