KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that he was committed to serving the ailing population of Sindh, particularly cancer patients, as he lost his parents to this disease.
He said this while addressing a ceremony in connection with ‘World Cancer Day’ organized by Kiran Hospital Saturday. He was accompanied by Health Minister Dr Sikandar Mendhro.
He said that the hospital was founded by then prime minister Shaheed Benazir Bhutto and chief minister Sindh Syed Abdullah Shah (father of the incumbent CM) in 1993.
“I feel inner pain when I hear about cancer as I lost both my parents to this disease,” he said. “I feel the pain of this disease and know how it turns people orphans, deprive them of their near and dear ones.”
CM Murad vowed to support all cancer hospitals, particularly Kiran Hospital in the shape of funds and necessary machinery and equipment. “I am with you and would extend you maximum support,” he assured the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission (PAEC) Chairman and Kiran Hospital Director Dr Akhtar.
The chief minister said that he would also play his due role to create awareness about cancer so that people could change their lifestyle, food habits and adopt healthier practices.
PAEC Chairman Mohammad Naeem on the occasion said that the commission’s contribution in human health included establishment of 18 PAEC cancer hospitals all over Pakistan. He added that the cancer hospitals were providing state-of-the-art diagnostic and therapeutic facilities to about 850,000 patients every year in the fields of nuclear medicine and radiotherapy.
“This is around 80 percent of the country’s reported cancer patients,” he said, adding that five of these cancer hospitals were in Sindh.
Earlier, the chief minister was informed that upto the year 2020, the number of cancer patients would reach to 20 million across Pakistan. On this the chief minister urged doctors to suggest ways and means to the government so that the cancer could be controlled.
