Cancer: Oncologist urges FG to engage more doctors, deploy to rural areas

Dr Chinedu Aruah, a Radiation and Clinical Oncologist, National Hospital Abuja, has urged Federal Government to engage more experts and deploy them to grassroots to check rising cases of cancer.
He gave the advice in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in
Abuja on Wednesday.
Aruah explained that the lack of experts to detect cancer at early stage contributed to the high rate of the ailment, especially at the grassroots.
The oncologist regretted that the few medical experts available in the country, and well equipped hospitals were concentrated in cities, leaving people in rural areas with nothing.
Aruah said: “Experts are key in helping to reduce cases of cancer because apart from the treatment, they also help in screening, creation of awareness because without awareness, not much can be done in terms of prevention and treatment.
“It is unfortunate that some doctors trained by Federal Government left for overseas to strengthen the health sector of other countries, defeating the aim of training them to serve people in the country.”
The doctor said late pregnancy among women was one of the major risk factors of breast cancer, as women who had their first pregnancies at 30 years and above were likely to experience upsurge of hormones called estrogen.
He stated that estrogen sustained pregnancies but equally distort some control mechanisms in the body.
According to him, there will be chances of abnormal cells, enlargement of uterus, among others, at late age, and these abnormal formations which are common with women who have late pregnancies, predispose them to breast cancer.
He said: “Late age first pregnancy and longer reproductive span are major risk factors of breast cancer.
“The commencement of child bearing from age 20, 22 to 30 years is highly recommended to prevent breast cancer.”
He added that breast cancer was the most common type of cancer in Nigeria, while lung cancer was the most common in developed countries.
Aruah, also a Lecturer at University of Abuja, noted that cancer was a public health problem worldwide, affecting all categories of persons in any part of human body.
He stated that when cancer was detected early, it could be treated and cured.