Maryam Nawaz Sharif Punjab Chief Minister inaugurated new cancer treatment and diagnostic facilities at Nishtar Hospital Multan comprising PET-CT cyclotron facility and cryoablation centre.
Maryam Nawaz visited the newly installed machine of cryoablation and was told that this machine is of Chinese origin and can be used to target and destroy cancerous tumours with needles, which is a minimally invasive treatment for those who are eligible.
She also toured the PET-CT cyclotron centre and the cyclotron process, and the radiopharmaceutical production laboratory and the pharmacy hot lab. The facilities are designed to aid the more advanced diagnosis and treatment of cancers at the hospital.
The chief minister visited the 100-bed cancer centre in the hospital, its out-patient department, intensive care unit, chemotherapy and radiotherapy rooms, digital and CT simulator facilities and a focused radiotherapy linear accelerator room.
In the course of the visit, Maryam met Musarrat Arshad, a 55-year old woman from Kamalia, who was the first patient to be treated with cancer using the new cryoablation machine. She also met another patient named Nasreen, 24 years old from Mian Channu and asked regarding her health.
Maryam informed the mother of a patient that the cryoablation machine was imported from China for treating cancer patients and hoped to alleviate patients’ suffering via the new machine.
The chief minister was also informed about the formation of a separate ward for children at the Multan Cancer Centre. Maryam ordered authorities to make the children’s ward fully functional as soon as possible.
During the visit, the health minister was briefed by Punjab Health Minister Khawaja Salman Rafique, Communication and Works Secretary Raja Jahangir Anwar and Health Secretary Azmat Mahmood.
The development follows an ongoing initiative by Punjab to establish specialized health care units throughout the province. Earlier, Maryam Nawaz has directed the government to expedite efforts on mega cancer-care initiatives, such as the Nawaz Sharif Institute of Cancer Treatment and Research in Lahore.
The new facilities at Nishtar Hospital will bring advanced diagnostic and treatment facilities to one of the major public hospitals in Multan, which could help increase the availability of specialized cancer care in southern Punjab.
