SHC asks Sindh government to set up authority to tackle cancer

Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday issued the directives to provincial government to establish Cancer Authority to tackle the fatal diseases effectively in the province. A division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Salahuddin Panhwar hearing a petition pertaining to ban on sale of Gutka, mainpuri etc. ordered the provincial government that competent doctors of Jinnah Hospital and SUIT should be included in this authority to check the spread of cancer.

The bench issued these orders after Director General Health submitted a report in the court, which revealed more than 176,000 persons have been diagnosed with oral cancer in the province during the last five years.

In its observations, the court termed the situation "grave and ruled that work should be carried out on war-footing to check the disease.

A report disclosed that Civil Hospital, Karachi received the highest number of oral cancler patients, which run into 83,000 whereas Bait-ul-Sakoon hospital received 16000 patients.

In Linar Hospital Larkana, 14534 patients of Oral Cancer were brought whereas 13000 such patients were brought in Noreen hospital Shaheed Benazirabad.

Nimra Hospital Jamshoro received 13573 patients and Kiran Hospital received 6500 patients.

The court also ordered Sindh Government to release the funds to Jinnah Hospital, which sought Rs600 million with regard to treatment of oral cancer patients.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019