RSS FeedAustralian Parliamentary Delegation Raise Questions on Breast Cancer in the Gaza Strip, while women die waiting
Victorian MP Maria Vamvakinou is raising the alarming death rates of women affected by breast cancer in the Gaza Strip with Palestinian and Israeli authorities during a field study of the Palestinian Territories this Easter. Ms Vamvakinou is the federal Labor member for Caldwell in Victoria.
22 April 2011
Victorian MP Maria Vamvakinou is raising the alarming death rates of women affected by breast cancer in the Gaza Strip with Palestinian and Israeli authorities during a field study of the Palestinian Territories this Easter. Ms Vamvakinou is the federal Labor member for Caldwell in Victoria.
After meeting with women having treatment for late-stage breast cancer, Ms Vamvakinou said that "most women in Gaza not only have difficulty accessing reliable information and early detection services for breast cancer, but they find it almost impossible to obtain appropriate treatment – I find this personally really very distressing."
Misha Coleman, CEO of Anglicord, an Australian overseas aid organization supporting healthcare programs in the Palestinian Territories, said from Palestine that "significant disparities exist between the five year survival rates for Palestinian, Israeli and Australian women diagnosed with breast cancer - Australia 80%; Israel 71%; and Gaza Strip 40%.”
As Co-Chair of the Parliamentary Breast Cancer Network, Maria Vamvakinou said that her field study was allowing her to understand some of the reasons for this late stage detection and inability to access treatment, such as:
- Limited medical services inside the Gaza Strip.
- The Israeli Government control of all Gaza Strip borders restricts access to essential oncology medication, medical equipment, and personnel qualified to provide oncological services.
- No radiation therapy is available in the Gaza Strip. All Palestinians requiring radiation therapy must travel to Egypt, Jordan or Israel for treatment. Radiation therapy is unavailable primarily due to Israel’s objection to the importation of radioactive materials into the Gaza Strip, and also to lack of expertise in handling such equipment.
- Limited access to treatment outside the Gaza Strip.
- Any patient requiring medical treatment outside Gaza must first gain permission to travel from the Israeli Government.
- The referral system for the medical treatment itself is managed by the Palestinian Authority (PA) in Ramallah. The demand for oncology treatment is high and treatment is expensive.
Anglicord's campaign Women Die Waiting aims to raise further financial support for a more comprehensive early detection and breast cancer awareness-raising program through its long term partner, the Al Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, a highly regarded Christian hospital that provides medical services to more than 56,000 people each year in Gaza, regardless of ethnicity, religion or political affiliation.
Anglicord is advocating for:
- a more timely and streamlined medical permit process, for people who need treatment and care outsideof Gaza
- for all drugs on the WHO Essential Drugs List to be supplied and to be made available in Gaza.
"As women in Australia, we have all either had a breast lump or known someone who has. For me personally, the scariest part was waiting for the diagnosis,” said Ms Coleman. “For women in Gaza, they wait too long for everything, including treatment, which is why I am here in Gaza now raising awareness about breast cancer and supporting access to the earliest possible detection".
Contacts:
Misha Coleman, Anglicord CEO +61 428 399 739 (Australia and roaming), +972 2 525 694 210 (in Jerusalem) or Maria Vamvakinou, MP, +61 407 817 782 (Australia and roaming), or Alison Preston, Anglicord Communications Manager + 61438 325 000