Scholar calls for better medical environment for lymphoma treatment in Macau

ADMINISTRATIVE

procedures for treating lymphoma cancer should be hastened for early treatment of patients, said former Clinical Professor of Hematology in Taiwan and current hematologist-oncologist in Macau, Ming-sun Yu, who hosted a doctor-patient communication workshop for the Association of Happy Paradise.

Some young adults who have experienced autologous stem cell transplantation participated in the workshop and shared their experiences with lymphoma and the mindsets that helped them to combat cancer.

The workshop is targeted at better communication between cancer patients and their families and doctors to enable patients to talk with their families about their experiences, understand each other and get advice from doctors, said Yu.

The intention behind the workshop is to provide encouragement and accurate medical information for patients and their families.

Yu said that it will only take less than a month for a patient who is found with symptoms of lymphoma to obtain a diagnosis and treatment, and treatment can end in half a year. However, in Macau, he said, there may be a waiting period of over three months (and multiple instances of such waiting periods), because of the slow administrative procedure.

One of the treatments for cancer is bone marrow transplantation (BMT). Patients need to be transferred to other cities for this treatment.

Meanwhile, Yu hopes that the Islands Healthcare Complex in Cotai will help cancer patients complete the entire treatment without being transferred to another facility or region by improving the software and hardware used for the procedure, investing in the development of professional medical teams, and accelerating progress in treating patients.