‘Fadia Survive & Thrive’ marks World Cancer Day
‘I Am and I Can’ awareness event and workshop held
Patients
KUWAIT CITY, Feb 6: According to the World Health Organization, there have been 10,032 cases of cancer in Kuwait in the last five years. Despite scientific advancements and new research findings, cancer is still one of the largest public health issues facing the world. At the current rate, deaths from cancer are projected to reach over 13 million in 2030, which makes it more the reason to continue pushing for substantive change at a global and national level and fight the challenges associated with cancer.
On Monday, Feb 4, Fadia Survive & Thrive Cancer Association, a leading patient advocacy group in Kuwait as part of its continuous cancer awareness and health advocacy initiatives organized ‘Together we are Unstoppable in Fighting Cancer: I Am and I Can’, an awareness event and workshop to commemorate World Cancer Day. The event aimed at raising awareness and encouraging participants including cancer patients and members of the public to express themselves in terms of this year’s campaign “I Am and I Can” and encourage them to make a personal commitment to accelerate action against cancer. World Cancer Day is an initiative of the Union for International Cancer Control , the largest and oldest international cancer organization that unites the cancer community to reduce the global cancer burden. It empowers the world to show support, raise their collective voice, take personal action and persuades governments to do more in the field of cancer treatment in a positive and inspiring way. When asked to explain the change in the wording of the slogan from I Am and I Will, Dr Rania Azmi, President of Fadia Survive & Thrive said, “This year, our association agreed to pledge I Am and I Can to encourage people to make a commitment and convince them that every commitment counts. It was amazing to see how they participated with enthusiasm in the workshop we conducted for “I Am and I Can.”
The “I Am and I Can” event held at The Hub Gallery had a sizeable audience including a number of cancer patients and their families, healthcare professionals and prominent citizens including AhmedRufai Yahaya Iddi, Ambassador of Ghana, representatives from the Russian Embassy, and Mrs Fadia Abdel Salam Ibrahim and Dr Eman Azmi, founding members of the Association. The event kicked off with a welcome speech by Dr Rania Azmi, a much awarded global decision-making expert of note from Egypt with more than two decades of experience in supporting strategic and operational decision making in large institutional investors, sovereign wealth funds and family businesses. Dr Azmi is also an activist for spreading cancer awareness and promoting patient advocacy and has for years actively participated in various international cancer conferences, advocating for cancer patients perspectives based on research and real-life cases.
The beginnings of Fadia Survive and Thrive goes back to 2012 when Dr Rania Azmi, one of its founders formed a group to research useful information for cancer patients as part of “Thrive Movement” for cancer advocacy and cure, especially about advanced and metastatic cancer. Soon after she initiated a local initiative at the Cancer Control Center called “Survive & Thrive”. With time, the members got increasingly involved in actively participating in international cancer conferences and patient advocacy groups which led them to form a global network to help the cause of empowerment of cancer patients with evidence based, scientific and practical information. Collaboration with many cancer stakeholders around the world, resulted in establishing Fadia Survive & Thrive to support cancer patients in four countries, including Kuwait where the founders are actively based. Speaking of the activities of the organization she heads, Dr Azmi said, “Our aim is two-fold. We want to make sure that everything is done to allow cancer patients to survive and thrive with the best possible information and knowledge. And we want to acknowledge the unique needs of advanced/metastatic cancer patients by facilitating their access to information and care.”
One of the highlights of the event at the Hub was an enlightening presentation by Dr Fahad Abdul Rahman Marafi, Director of Jaber Al-Ahmad Center for Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging and President of Kuwait Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging who spoke on scientific advancements in diagnosis and treatment based on his extensive experience. The event also featured Emilia Barr, an experienced psychotherapist who emphasized on nurturing self-compassion. Dr Aziz gave an interesting presentation titled ‘Pillars of Well-Being’ in which she discussed ways and means to improve quality of life and counter cancer from a patient advocate perspective. When asked if there has been an increased awareness regarding cancer in recent years, Dr Azmi answered, “Awareness is increasing but lifestyle habits are changing as well, and not necessarily the healthy ones. We are living in a fast-paced world, and it is becoming more difficult to pay attention to eating and well-being habits despite our awareness of diseases like cancer and other health challenges.” Speaking of the success of the organization in reaching out to the public, Dr Azmi said, “We are volunteering in every possible way to reach out to the public. By inviting them to events organized by us, we aim to increase our reach and catalyst lifestyle changes that are healthier with evidence-based information and research that can be put into action for a healthy community.” The event concluded with a workshop where the guests shared ways in which they can counter cancer in the light of this year’s campaign “I Am and I Can”. Events such as this are important to inspire, educate, empower and help bring a cancer cure a little closer.