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To improve outcomes of cancer treatment, medical experts have urged clinicians to educate patients on accurate reliable diagnoses towards promoting the treatments.
An Associate Professor/Consultant Haematologist, University of Calabar/ University of calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar, Dr. Marcus Inyama Asuquo, who spoke at the maiden 7 River Labs Conference themed ‘Equalising Precision Diagnostics in Nigeria’ warned that it is dangerous for patients to waste money on half treatment that leads nowhere.
In his Cancer Case Presentation: The role of accurate and reliable diagnostic testing in a real-life scenario”, said over the ages, clinical diagnosis has moved from the occult and metaphysical to the era of genomics sciences using novel tools that pinpoint the cause(s) of disease at the molecular level with a high level of accuracy and precision.
He expressed that the development has opened a new vista of healthcare with the potential to repair the health of an individual with the administration of a custom made molecule that repairs the damaged gene.
Asuquo urged clinicians to handle diagnosis well to make it easier for both patients and physicians to start treatment.
In his staement ,He Said “Breaking the news to patients that has cancer is a herculean task and that is where we lose most patients and they reject the diagnosis and go to a place where they feel they have better treatment.
“We had a young boy about 23 years that had a lymphoma. We finished the diagnosis he did not have money. I have to reach out to someone whom I convinced and the person donated money and the drugs were bought. And then just to stablise him to start treatment, he said ‘doctor excuse me let me go and take care of myself. He went to church and died in the church a week after leaving the hospital.
“As clinicians, we have to do a lot to really convince the patients this is where you ought to take your treatment. We also use patients advocate. We have patients who have been living with cancer for nine years and above, we use them to encourage others.
We have another patient and he needs targeted therapy, the cost for one injection is N520, 000 and he took it to his boss and the boss allocated land to him in Abuja. He sold it and the proceeds used to buy the drugs and he is able to live long.