SEVEN specialists from the Nicosia general hospital started working at the Bank of Cyprus Oncology Centre without a hitch on Monday, reports said yesterday.
Following the breakdown of the outdated radiotherapy equipment at the hospital, the only alternative doctors could come up with to treat around 40 of the cancer patients left in the lurch, was to use one of two linear accelerators at the BoC centre, Health Ministry Medical Services Head, Dr. Constantinos Mallis, said yesterday.
At the moment, the centre could treat 70 patients a day, its director Alecos Stamati said. But doctors said they would be extending their working time schedules and increasing the equipments’ operation times in order to ensure all patients received radiotherapy and the centre’s waiting list was cleared.
“The centre’s equipment is sufficient to treat all cancer patients in Cyprus and it is my understanding that treatment will be carried out in shifts,” said Mallis. “But if for some reason the needs of patients are not being met sufficiently the minister has said the state would foot the bill for treatment abroad.” It was the state’s responsibility to ensure that its citizens were receiving treatment and so far, by collaborating with the BoC, it was able to do just that, he added.
The Cancer Patients and Friends Association said it too was satisfied with the co-operation agreement reached by both BoC and state doctors to help patients.
“Initially we did have complaints from patients, which was why we insisted that something had to be done to rectify the situation and to ensure patients were receiving the necessary treatment,” Maria Vanezou told the Cyprus Mail. “But, so far we are satisfied that the two teams of medical experts have decided to come together and sort out the problem.”
She said the Association would be waiting to see how efficiently the new programme was implemented and whether or not all patients received sufficient treatment.
“Our concern and interest, as far as this programme is concerned, lies with the patients and the care they receive,” said Vanezou. “We will therefore be waiting to see how the situation develops.”
No one was available for further comment at the centre yesterday.
The Cyprus Mail is the only English-language daily newspaper published in Cyprus. It was established in 1945 and today, with its popular and widely-read website, the Cyprus Mail is among the most trusted news sites in Cyprus. The newspaper is not affiliated with any political parties and has always striven to maintain its independence. Over the past 70-plus years, the Cyprus Mail, with a small dedicated team, has covered momentous events in Cyprus’ modern history, chronicling the last gasps of British colonial rule, Cyprus’ truncated independence, the coup and Turkish invasion, and the decades of negotiations to stitch the divided island back together, plus a myriad of scandals, murders, and human interests stories that capture the island and its -people. Observers describe it as politically conservative.
