Some cancer patients are undergoing screening at Queen Elizabeth II Hospital by the Apollo Hospital Team of Oncologists who arrived today, Thursday January 10 for a two-day visit. Health deputy minister ’Manthabiseng Phohleli said during a press briefing on Tuesday in Maseru that the special visit follows on the agreement signed between the Apollo Hospital Medical Team and the Ministry of Health to assist Lesotho with the treatment of certain non-communicable diseases (NCD) with specific focus on renal and cancer diseases in India.
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Jan. 10, 2019
2 min read
Cancer experts visit Lesotho
She said the current screening would involve only patients previously screened and suspected of having cancer and those already on treatment for check-up purposes, and the service which she emphasised is only meant for cancer patients and not renal patients since no nephrologists would be around as is normal practice. She thus called on all cancer suspects to come forward to enable smooth operation of the referral service to India if need be. It was at the same debriefing that the media learned that there is no statistics in regard to the cancer and renal diseases yet the Deputy Minister of health however lamented over the uptake of antiretroviral drugs due to Lesotho’s high HIV prevalence as having a link with the diseases per their adverse effects to a human’s health.
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On this note while preparations are in the pipeline to ensure the administration of cancer medication locally through the National Drug Services Organization (NDSO) sustained pharmaceutical production by the Ministry of Health, renal patients treated in India are however administered a three-month’s supply of medication upon returning to Lesotho after their treatment at the Apollo Hospitals in India after which they are medicated locally. Lesotho meanwhile only has a dialysis service performed at Motebang Hospital for renal patients requiring such service whilst kidney transplants are referred to Apollo Hospital per the agreement.
Over and above since the agreement came into effect in July 2018 the first batch of nine people was treated India and comprised four renal and five cancer patients and eight who are currently reportedly in good health while one of them, the 84-year-old woman reportedly succumbed to stage four cancer coupled with old age. The second batch also treated in India in September 2018 comprising one renal and seven cancer patients is reportedly recovering with the most recent entailing one kidney and eight cancer patients has also been underwent the same treatment. They are accompanied by either nurse or doctor on leaving Lesotho for India and a total of 27 patients has to date been refereed for treatment in India. Twelve have since returned home while 15 are still recuperating in India.
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