Endon's Death Triggers Awareness On Cancer

KUALA LUMPUR, Dec 15 (Bernama) -- Prime Minister's wife Datin Seri Endon Mahmood's death due to breast cancer last Oct 20 was wept by the nation and sparked off awareness among the public of how dangerous the disease can be.
It also got various quarters, both from the government and the private sector, organising programmes to encourage the public to make early check-up for cancer as well as calls for research to find an antidote for the disease.
Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, not wanting others to suffer like his beloved wife, had also expressed the need for more research in health care, particularly in prevention and treatment of cancer, for the benefit of the poor.
Towards this end, the Health Ministry is in the final stages of presenting to the government an Action Plan on Cancer Prevention which contained, among others, diagnosis, treatment, herbs and traditional medicines which could be used in cancer treatment.
The Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) had embarked on a large scale herbal farming to identify plants which could be used as antidote for cancer while the Malaysian Cancer Council (MAKNA) had allocated RM1.1 million for the setting up of a mobile team for cancer checks.
MAKNA president Datuk Mohd Farid Ariffin said an alternative method for treatment of cancer should be identified for those who could not afford modern treatment, which was costly.
Besides cancer, there was also concern over dengue cases with more than 1,000 people reported infected by the disease every week early this year.
Until last October, the number of dengue cases reported in the country was 34,485, including 1,736 dengue haemorrhagic cases, with 86 deaths compared to the same period last year with 26,870 cases and 84 deaths.
Selangor recorded the highest number of cases (11,367 with 24 deaths), followed by the Federal Territory (5,027 cases with 14 deaths) and Penang (3,129 cases with seven deaths).
The year 2005 also saw the government intensifying efforts to check the spread of HIV/Aids. One of them was providing free syringes and condoms for drug addicts.
Statistics showed that 18 people died of HIV/AIDS everyday in the country with the number of HIV patients expected to increase to 300,000 by 2015 from 65,000 people currently.
The spread of the Avian Influenza or bird-flu in several neighbouring countries had also put Malaysia on the alert throughout the year.
Although no case had been detected in the country, the World Health Organisation (WHO) reported that 133 people had been infected by the disease until Nov 29. Sixty-eight of them died.
Among the measures taken by the Health Ministry was to monitor cases of influenza-like illnesses.
The ministry also produced a document on "National Influanza Pandemic Preparedness Plan" (NIPPP) which outlined guidelines to be observed in preventing the outbreak of the bird-flu in the country.
The Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry Ministry is also drafting an enactment, which among others, would require individuals to obtain licence to rear chicken and for slaughtering of chicken be done only at designated government and private slaughter-houses.