Recognizing first signs of cancer

Secretary General of Gulf Federation for Cancer Control (GFCC) Dr Khalid Al-Saleh said 18 training courses were held with the aim of recognizing the first signs of cancer, as part of an intensive program sponsored by the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences (KFAS) from January until March 2023.

Dr Saleh said the GFCC secretariat carried out the courses ahead of the month of Ramadan, as more than 320 trainees participated including primary care doctors, dentists and nurses in cooperation with specialized departments at the ministry of health. He said the training courses raise the level of knowledge towards cancer in Kuwait and gives them the necessary experience to recognize the first signs of tumors, which reduces the time between tumor discovery and transferring the case to specialists, and this reduces the number of late cases.

Dr Saleh said the courses began 12 years ago, with successful cooperation with the National Campaign for Cancer Awareness (CAN). He said 1,356 primary care doctors, 1,343 dentists and 2,409 nurses were trained and appreciated the effective role of primary care doctors, dentists and nurses, with oncologists to benefit from their experience in early diagnosis of cancer.

Dr Saleh thanked KFAS for its support of its belief in the importance of training specialized cadres to serve the society, particularly in the health field. He also thanked Kuwait Institute for Medical Specialization for giving points for continued medical education as an encouragement for trainees’ participation.