Free care for all from cradle to grave

Minister of Health, Colm Imbert, on Saturday announced that cancer patients will soon benefit from a new, state-of-the-art oncology centre to be built within the next two years at a cost of $150 million.

He was addressing the handing-over ceremony of the Trinidad and Tobago Cancer Society’s mobile clinic at the society’s offices at 26 Rosalino Street, Woodbrook. Effusing over the promised cancer centre, Imbert said: “We will be able to treat everybody and every form of cancer in Trinidad and Tobago. We will bring people from Canada to train local staff. Two years from now people suffering from cancer will no longer have to travel abroad but will be treated here at very low cost, or if I have my way, at no cost.” Saying that cancer respected no-one regardless of race, class or age, and that cancer affected one in five families, Imbert remarked: “This is a very serious disease.” He vowed to continue his Ministry’s annual $1 million grant to the Cancer Society.

Praising the society’s work, the Minister said: “Today’s event is very significant. The secret [of treating cancer] is early detection. Fifty percent of cancer patients can be treated if the cancer is detected in time.” Imbert also said he wanted to expand the Government’s current pilot programme of offering free medication to an initial group of 65,000 old age pensioners suffering any of the four chronic diseases of diabetes, hypertension, glaucoma and some cardiac diseases. Imbert said: “We want to expand the programme in five stages: One, old age pensioners and those getting the disability grant; two, all persons over age 65; three, all persons over age 60 years; four, all persons under age 16; and five, the entire population. I hope to expand the diseases treated - arthritis, asthma, depression and many other chronic diseases. It is my hope to treat everyone from the cradle to the grave for all chronic diseases.” 

Cancer Society chairman, Dr George Laquis, said the mobile unit would be used to take pap smear samples, perform breast and prostrate examinations and would be assigned to Tobago. He said that the cancer causing the most concern locally was cervical cancer which he said was caused by a sexually transmitted virus. He said the mobile would help the society to screen persons vulnerable to cervical cancer, persons who might not otherwise be able to afford the transport fare to the society’s Woodbrook office. “We are going to go out into the community.”  Dr Laquis used the event to launch the first edition of the Cancer Society’s annual magazine, Cancer Chat, paying tribute to its editor Joanna Bharose. “It is written for the public, educating people on cancer awareness and cancer prevention.” He added: “Deaths from cancer are too high. We still have to fight the scourge of tobacco. We will lobby the Minister of Health for tobacco anti-advertising legislation”.