PM calls advanced cancer care ‘biggest service to humanity’

MUZAFFARABAD: Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday praised the Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission’s contributions to the health sector, describing the provision of modern cancer treatment facilities as the “biggest service to humanity.”

Addressing the inauguration ceremony of the Kashmir Institute of Nuclear Medicine, Oncology and Radiotherapy (KINOR) in Muzaffarabad, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, the prime minister said there could be no nobler cause than providing treatment at people’s doorsteps. He noted that patients from Muzaffarabad and remote areas of AJK previously had to travel to Islamabad and other cities to seek treatment for life-threatening diseases.

In remarks broadcast live on national television, he commended the efforts of PAEC and other concerned authorities, urging them to remain mindful of the pain and suffering of patients who lack the financial means to afford expensive treatments such as cancer care.

Sharing his personal experience as a cancer survivor, the prime minister said cancer treatment is costly and especially burdensome for patients travelling from far-flung regions to major cities. He stressed the need to ease their hardship by expanding access to quality healthcare services.

Lauding PAEC’s services, he called for further steps to combat cancer through early screening, awareness and improved facilities, saying such efforts give hope and relief to patients and their families.

AJK Prime Minister Faisal Mumtaz Rathore, ministers, parliamentarians and health experts attended the ceremony.

Speaking on the occasion, PAEC Chairman Raja Ali Raza Anwar highlighted the commission’s role in the health sector, stating that 20 PAEC-supported cancer treatment centres currently bear nearly 80 percent of the country’s cancer patient load. He said the newly inaugurated KINOR would be the 21st such facility and would provide modern, quality healthcare services to AJK residents close to their homes under the supervision of PAEC oncology experts.

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He added that nearly 60 percent of cancer patients in Pakistan present at advanced stages, underlining the urgent need for early screening, awareness and timely diagnosis. From AJK alone, around 1,000 new cancer patients travel each year to PAEC hospitals in other provinces, facing long distances and financial strain.

A message from International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi was also screened at the ceremony, in which he congratulated Pakistan on establishing new cancer treatment facilities and praised PAEC’s role in serving humanity with advanced medical equipment and centres.

Earlier, the prime minister visited various departments of the hospital and was briefed on the facilities available at KINOR.