Head-neck cancer hospital needed in the city

Reza Mahmud :
Physicians of the National Institute of Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT Hospital) at Tejgaon in the capital struggle to render medical treatment to huge number of head, neck and ear cancer patients regularly.
They said that a good number of head, neck and ear cancer patients face untold suffering due to lack of sufficient medical treatment facilities in the capital.
Physicians and officials of the ENT Hospital said that about 250 patients used to come in the medical facility every day. On average 30 to 40 patients seek admission in the hospital daily.
On an average, about 1050 patients are found eligible for admission in the hospital whereas 65 per cent of 682 patients found infected with such cancer, the doctors said.
“Around 30 to 40 patients vie for an empty bed in the hospital every day. Of them, about 65 per cent are found infected with head, neck or ear cancer. But there are few facility in the hospital to provide sufficient medical treatment to them,” Dr Ali Noor Md. Bashir Ahmed, Assistant Director of the hospital told The New Nation.
He said that the government should establish a separate cancer unit under the ENT hospital administration, or should construct a fresh hospital for rendering medical treatment to those patients.
According to the hospital administration, all 135 beds of the hospital remain fulfilled every day.
The physicians said the cancer patients need to get emergency therapy regularly. But there is very few scope for them to render such medical services in the city.
They said that rich familie’s patients can afford the medical costs in private hospitals, but the middle and lower income people hardly get adequate treatment.
When contacted, Professor Dr. Md Abu Hanif, Director of the hospital told The New Nation, “A cancer patient needs to get stipulated therapy regularly within 15 days, but the seat in this hospital is not available for them to provide the facility in time.”
The Director suggested to the government to construct a separate specialised cancer unit in this hospital for helping those patients who cannot afford medical care in highly expenditures private health facilities.
In a bid to construct a new unit or hospital for the cancer patients, officials suggested the ministry to allot lands from the neighboring Tejgaon thana health complex which is kept huge lands unused for long.
The public health experts said that cancer infection is growing alarmingly among the people due to lead undisciplined life.