Kuwait spending substantially on cancer treatment
KUWAIT: The cost of medicines for treating cancer in Kuwait’s health budget amounted to KD 23 million ($76 million) in the 2017-2018 fiscal year, an official at the health ministry said yesterday. The value of medicines for breast cancer has reached KD 6.1 million ($20.1 million), the most costly category, followed by lymphatic and blood cancers with KD 4.9 million (16.1 million), said Abeer Mansour, director of the health ministry’s medical stores, in an interview with KUNA. Colon cancer ranks below the abovementioned segments, with the cost of the drugs estimated at KD 1.2 million ($4.2 million), followed by prostate cancer with KD 618,362 ($2.04 million).
Farah Dashti, manager of the medical engineering department, said the cost of diagnostic equipment stands at KD 1.6 million ($6 million). Dr Hadeel AlMutawa, deputy manager of the Kuwait Center for Combating Cancer, said number of cancer patients in the country stands at 2,204 - 1,058 citizens and 1,146 expatriates (according to the center’s 2013 figures).
Dr Hanaa Al-Khawari, the head of the national program for early detection of cancer, recently said 142 Kuwaiti women were diagnosed with breast cancer. Up to 11,100 Kuwaiti women have been
examined as part of the program that was launched in 2014. Among 1,000 women, 11 were diagnosed with breast cancer. Dr Fahd Al-Ibrahim, the head of the department for the early detection of colon cancer at the health ministry, said this program has been in effect for early diagnosis since 2015.
Another specialist, Dr Khaled Al-Saleh, deputy chairman of the national campaign for promoting awareness of cancer (CAN), said rates of cancer in Kuwait have increased, along with a noticeable hike in treatment costs. The rate of treatment has reached 60 percent, along with some cases where it has hit 90 percent. As for lung cancer, he expressed his belief that the rates can be lowered by quitting smoking. Breast cancer can be treated in the early stages at a proportion of 80 percent, compared to 30 percent in later stages.
Dr Nawal Al-Goud, director of the nutrition department at the ministry, recommends breastfeeding and eating healthy as some of the natural means of minimizing the chances of developing cancer. She also warns against obesity, cardiac illnesses as well as stress as contributors to the disease. — KUNA