World Cancer Day: Simplify sensitisation messages to reduce fear — Expert

Tue, Feb 4, 2020
By publisher
2 MIN READ

Health

A Medical Physicist, Aderonke Morakinyo, has appealed to caregivers to simplify sensitisation messages and outcomes of diagnosis to reduce panic about cancer.

Morakinyo spoke with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in commemoration of the World Cancer Day on Tuesday in Lagos.

The World Cancer Day is organised by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC) and celebrated annually on Feb.4.

The theme for the 2020 celebration, ‘I Am and I Will’, acknowledges that everyone has the capacity to act in the face of cancer.

She appealed that physicians should ensure that their explanation of the disease, causes, symptoms and treatment was clear, simple and devoid of medical jargon.

According to her, simplifying messages and showing more empathy will encourage more people to present themselves for regular screening that can lead to early detection and treatment of cancerous cells.

“The sensitisation should take people’s mind off the fear, put them at ease and if diagnosed with cancer, should not be seen as a death sentence because it can be managed.

“There are people with stage one and two cancer; we introduced them to dietary balance, regular exercise, hot water therapy and advise to reduce stress level, they got better with time,” she said.

The medical physicist who was a Cancer Research Candidate at Nigerian Defense Academy, Kaduna, noted that findings had shown that patients are scared of cancer treatment than the disease itself.

She said that the event was an opportunity to rally international community to end preventable suffering from cancer.

She noted that physicians were pivotal in ensuring the overall wellbeing of patients, adding that a listening doctor that takes time to discuss treatment options instills confidence and aid survivor rate of patients.

Morakinyo advised people to avoid tobacco, alcohol and sugary foods and ensure regular exercise, cancer screening tests as well as maintain healthy diets to reduce cancer risk.

World Cancer Day aims to save millions of preventable deaths yearly by raising awareness and education about the disease.

It is also meant to press governments and individuals across the world to take action against cancer.

Data from World Health Organisation (WHO) shows that cancer is the second leading cause of death globally, and is responsible for an estimated 9.6 million deaths in 2018.

Globally, about 1 in 6 deaths is due to cancer, and approximately 70 per cent of deaths from cancer occur in low- and middle-income countries.

NAN

– Feb. 4, 2020 @ 18:39 GMT |

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