THE BANK of Cyprus Oncology Centre yesterday pledged to spend €17 million to improve and upgrade its services and infrastructure over the next three years.
By 2010, the island’s cancer treatment hub has plans to have installed its third linear accelerator and to replace its old accelerators with two new ones, and to have constructed a therapy vault. The centre also has plans to build up its departments of radiodiagnostic and nuclear medicine, as well as to improve its day care and outpatient clinics. Plans to build a multi-storey car park in co-operation with the Makarios hospital that lies behind the Nicosia oncology centre are also underway.
Additionally, experts are examining what further services building an additional floor could offer patients.
The centre’s projections for the next two to three years were outlined by First Lady Elsie Christofia yesterday.
Christofia was speaking at a news conference to mark the oncology unit’s 10th anniversary.
“In the 10 years since the centre has operated, it has treated almost 16,000 of our fellow citizens. In 2008, the number of new patients that will come to the Centre will reach 1,800, with an average of 150 new cases each month. On a daily basis, 350-400 patients use the centre’s various services,” she said.
The number of ‘active’ patients the centre sees exceeds 8,000, with all of them expected to visit at least once this year.
According to the centre’s records, 1,353 new patients registered from January to September. Of this number, 81 per cent are Greek Cypriots. One hundred and thirty-five EU nationals also registered, as did 81 Turkish Cypriot patients and 45 patients from third countries.
The centre also covers all the island’s radiotherapy needs, with September’s treatment schedule averaging 106 patients per day.
One third of all cancer patients came from Limassol and Paphos, Christofia said.
“Efforts are being made by the state to create a centre in Limassol to cover the [cancer] needs of Paphos and Limassol but it has not yet been completed.”
Once the new centre, which was a government priority, was up and running, the BoC Centre would be able to focus more of its efforts on research and further improve on patient care.
“At present, the scientists and doctors here are obliged to deal with clinical work at the expense of research,” she said.
Although clinical trials and studies are carried out, doctors yesterday confirmed they were in a stage of infancy, with a limited number of patient participation.
Christofia vowed that the centre would work with the Health Ministry to ensure any shortages were met, adding that the main weaknesses were structural due to the lack of a universal health system.
On the occasion of the Centre’s 10th anniversary it will host a Scientific Meeting in the BoC Oncology Centre’s conference room tomorrow from 3pm to 5.30pm. Guest speakers include Dr Peter Boyle, Director of the International Agency for Research on Cancer, Professor Alan Maynard, Director of the Health Policy Group at the University of York, and Dr Sadvinder Mudan, a consultant surgeon at London’s Royal Marsden Hospital. The event is open to the public.
