Thursday, September 13, 2007
Rates of cancer have risen in Kurdistan
Health
(Kurdish Globe) - Cancer has become a considerable health problem in Kurdistan Region, with rises in breast and lung cancers and leukemia among the most common diagnosed. Recent statistics by Erbil hospitals for blood diseases and oncology have shown an increasing number of patients diagnosed with cancer through the region compared to earlier years.
According to the chemotherapy department at Rizgary Teaching Hospital, 150 cases of cancer had been identified in the hospital in 2006; most of those patients were men affected by lung cancer and women with breast cancer. For this year until now, the number of cancer patients has risen up to 303. "Most patients are under a physician's care; we have no problem in controlling the disease but we have a lack of drugs," said Dr.Khoshawi Kanabi Aziz, assistant manager of the aforementioned hospital. He added that patients' families have to pay about $100 to $150 per month to buy necessary drugs.
Additionally in 2006, according to Nanakaly Hospital, about 891 patients had visited the hospital per month to receive cancer treatment. Currently, 2,454 patients are receiving cancer treatments monthly. Regarding causes of blood cancers, Sami Ahmed, director of Nanakaly Hospital, said, "So far, the exact reason causing these diseases is not well understood, but environmental factors such as radiation from atomic bombs and exposure to some chemicals such as benzene (car fuel) might have an impact on increasing cancer rates among the population."
The patients are treated gratuitously and those who can't be treated in the region are sent abroad at the government's expense. Doctors in Erbil complain about lack of necessary medical instruments to back their abilities in treating the patients inside the region. Apart from local patients, Iranian Kurds, Turkey Kurds, and Arabs from southern Iraq come to receive cancer treatments in Nanakaly Hospital. Beside Erbil's Nanakaly and Rizgary, Hiwa Hospital in Suleimaniya has tried to equip itself for blood diseases and oncology.
Statistics show that, apart from Erbil, the cancer rate in general has risen. In 2006, 782 cases of cancer were identified in the hospital; 430 of them were women and the rest were men. Furthermore, 165 of the patients developed a blood disease (hematology) and others different organ cancers. According to Hiwa Hospital, compared to last year, the number of patients in Erbil has also increased. From the beginning of 2007 to early August, more than 723 patents were diagnosed with cancer in the hospital.
According to the chemotherapy department at Rizgary Teaching Hospital, 150 cases of cancer had been identified in the hospital in 2006; most of those patients were men affected by lung cancer and women with breast cancer. For this year until now, the number of cancer patients has risen up to 303. "Most patients are under a physician's care; we have no problem in controlling the disease but we have a lack of drugs," said Dr.Khoshawi Kanabi Aziz, assistant manager of the aforementioned hospital. He added that patients' families have to pay about $100 to $150 per month to buy necessary drugs.
Additionally in 2006, according to Nanakaly Hospital, about 891 patients had visited the hospital per month to receive cancer treatment. Currently, 2,454 patients are receiving cancer treatments monthly. Regarding causes of blood cancers, Sami Ahmed, director of Nanakaly Hospital, said, "So far, the exact reason causing these diseases is not well understood, but environmental factors such as radiation from atomic bombs and exposure to some chemicals such as benzene (car fuel) might have an impact on increasing cancer rates among the population."
The patients are treated gratuitously and those who can't be treated in the region are sent abroad at the government's expense. Doctors in Erbil complain about lack of necessary medical instruments to back their abilities in treating the patients inside the region. Apart from local patients, Iranian Kurds, Turkey Kurds, and Arabs from southern Iraq come to receive cancer treatments in Nanakaly Hospital. Beside Erbil's Nanakaly and Rizgary, Hiwa Hospital in Suleimaniya has tried to equip itself for blood diseases and oncology.
Statistics show that, apart from Erbil, the cancer rate in general has risen. In 2006, 782 cases of cancer were identified in the hospital; 430 of them were women and the rest were men. Furthermore, 165 of the patients developed a blood disease (hematology) and others different organ cancers. According to Hiwa Hospital, compared to last year, the number of patients in Erbil has also increased. From the beginning of 2007 to early August, more than 723 patents were diagnosed with cancer in the hospital.
Labels: cancer, Kurdistan, Nanakaly Hospital, Rizgary Teaching Hospital
Monday, May 21, 2007
SIIC leader in Iran for cancer treatment
Politics
(Al Jazeera) - Abdul-Aziz al-Hakim, the leader of Iraq's largest Shia party, is in Iran for lung cancer treatment after being diagnosed at a Texas hospital, officials close to the cleric say. The development is expected to create disarray in the Supreme Islamic Council in Iraq, the political organisation the US has counted on to help push through reforms.
Al-Hakim flew to the US on Wednesday for tests after doctors at a US-run hospital in Baghdad detected signs of cancer in one of his lungs. The diagnosis was confirmed at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, officials in the al-Hakim organisation said on Sunday. Al-Hakim, leader of the Supreme Islamic Council since 2003, will undergo chemotherapy treatment in Iran, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Iran, Iraq's Shia neighbour to the east, hosted al-Hakim in exile for more than two decades during Saddam Hussein's rule. His party, formerly known as the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, was founded there with Iranian help in the early 1980s. Al-Hakim, who gave up a 30-year smoking habit last year, has been coughing and suffering from high blood pressure for months, the officials said. His cough became worse during two days of party meetings this month, where he was re-elected party leader.
News of al-Hakim's diagnosis came only hours after another Iraqi leader, Jalal Talabani, 73, Iraq's president, flew to the US for a checkup. He was hospitalised in Jordan three months ago after collapsing. Doctors said he was suffering from exhaustion and dehydration from lung and sinus infections. Talabani, a Kurd and an ally of al-Hakim, was expected to be away from Iraq for three weeks.
Al-Hakim flew to the US on Wednesday for tests after doctors at a US-run hospital in Baghdad detected signs of cancer in one of his lungs. The diagnosis was confirmed at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, officials in the al-Hakim organisation said on Sunday. Al-Hakim, leader of the Supreme Islamic Council since 2003, will undergo chemotherapy treatment in Iran, according to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Iran, Iraq's Shia neighbour to the east, hosted al-Hakim in exile for more than two decades during Saddam Hussein's rule. His party, formerly known as the Supreme Council for the Islamic Revolution in Iraq, was founded there with Iranian help in the early 1980s. Al-Hakim, who gave up a 30-year smoking habit last year, has been coughing and suffering from high blood pressure for months, the officials said. His cough became worse during two days of party meetings this month, where he was re-elected party leader.
News of al-Hakim's diagnosis came only hours after another Iraqi leader, Jalal Talabani, 73, Iraq's president, flew to the US for a checkup. He was hospitalised in Jordan three months ago after collapsing. Doctors said he was suffering from exhaustion and dehydration from lung and sinus infections. Talabani, a Kurd and an ally of al-Hakim, was expected to be away from Iraq for three weeks.
Al-Hakim chose treatment in Iran rather than the US because he wanted to be close to his family, party officials said. Proper treatment was not available in Iraq. Al-Hakim's choice of Iran also reflected his close links to the Shia theocracy there.
Al-Hakim's absence could last several months or longer, said the officials, thus robbing Iraq from a key political player who has been a major partner in US efforts to build a democratic system regardless of his ties to Iran. American efforts to push through major reforms such as an oil law, constitutional amendments and expanded opportunities for Sunnis in government would face even more hurdles without al-Hakim.
For his party, his absence is potentially more dramatic. "We are concerned," said Hameed Moalah, a lawmaker and a senior official of the Supreme Council. "We are in a difficult situation," he said of al-Hakim's expected absence. Redha Jawad Taqi, a senior party leader, said Adil Abdul-Mahdi, the vice-president, was running the party in al-Hakim's absence. Longer-term questions about succession at the top of the party remain unanswered. Al-Hakim's son, 35-year-old Amar, has for years been groomed to succeed his father, but there were no plans for him to assume a leadership role for another decade, Taqi said.
Al-Hakim's absence could last several months or longer, said the officials, thus robbing Iraq from a key political player who has been a major partner in US efforts to build a democratic system regardless of his ties to Iran. American efforts to push through major reforms such as an oil law, constitutional amendments and expanded opportunities for Sunnis in government would face even more hurdles without al-Hakim.
For his party, his absence is potentially more dramatic. "We are concerned," said Hameed Moalah, a lawmaker and a senior official of the Supreme Council. "We are in a difficult situation," he said of al-Hakim's expected absence. Redha Jawad Taqi, a senior party leader, said Adil Abdul-Mahdi, the vice-president, was running the party in al-Hakim's absence. Longer-term questions about succession at the top of the party remain unanswered. Al-Hakim's son, 35-year-old Amar, has for years been groomed to succeed his father, but there were no plans for him to assume a leadership role for another decade, Taqi said.
Labels: Abdul Aziz Al Hakim, Adil Abdul-Mahdi, cancer, Iran, Jalal Talabani, SIIC, Supreme Islamic Council in Iraq
Friday, May 11, 2007
Study - 50 per cent of deaths due to cancer in southern Iraq
Health
(Azzaman) - Cancer-related death rates have increased substantially in southern Iraq particularly in the provinces of Basra and Missan, a medical study has found. The study by the Basra University’s Medical College scientists said cancerous diseases are now the cause of “a large percentage of deaths” in southern Iraq.
It said 10 different cancers were prevalent in the region. The researchers used hospital morgue statistics for their investigation and findings. The study reveals that 56.3 per cent of all male deaths in southern Iraq are caused by cancer. “Cancer-related female deaths amount to 43.7 per cent,” the study said.
Meanwhile, another study by Basra University’s Maritime Research Center has shown that pesticides were being used excessively in Iraq leading to detrimental impact on the environment and agricultural produce. The high concentration of chemical substances in water and locally produced vegetables and other foods was much higher than normal standards, the study said. It said chemicals were even being used in fishing. “The high percentage usage of chemicals particularly in southern Iraq has an adverse impact even on breast feeding and pregnant women,” it said.
It said 10 different cancers were prevalent in the region. The researchers used hospital morgue statistics for their investigation and findings. The study reveals that 56.3 per cent of all male deaths in southern Iraq are caused by cancer. “Cancer-related female deaths amount to 43.7 per cent,” the study said.
Meanwhile, another study by Basra University’s Maritime Research Center has shown that pesticides were being used excessively in Iraq leading to detrimental impact on the environment and agricultural produce. The high concentration of chemical substances in water and locally produced vegetables and other foods was much higher than normal standards, the study said. It said chemicals were even being used in fishing. “The high percentage usage of chemicals particularly in southern Iraq has an adverse impact even on breast feeding and pregnant women,” it said.
Labels: Basra, Basra University Medical College, cancer, health, medical study, Missan
