The Governor of Bayelsa State, the Honourable Henry Seriake Dickson, has called on the Nigerias Media to raise awareness about the scourge of cancer in the country.
The Governor said that cancer was quietly decimating the population of Nigerians and should be tackled decisively by all citizens of good conscience.
In a statement on Tuesday, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media Relations, Mr. Fidelis Soriwei, stated that the Governor made the comment while interacting with top media personalities in Abuja on Tuesday.
The governor who interacted bureau chiefs and editors of Media Houses also received in audience the management of the African Indepedent Television led by the Chairman Emeritus, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi.
The governor said that the Dickson family had taken a decision to spearhead campaign against the spread of cancer since the death of his mother, Mrs. GoldCoast Dickson, from Lung Cancer.
The Late Mrs. Goldcoast Dickson died of lung cancer at the University of Texas M.D Anderson Cancer Centre, Houston, Texas, in the United States at the age of 72.
He said that the family planned to establish a cancer centre in honour of the memory of his late mother to coordinate cancer awareness campaigns and encourage screening for early detection and treatment of the deadly disease.
He lamented that the late Mrs. GoldCoast died of lung cancer in spite of the fact that she never smoked cigarettes in her life time.
Governor Dickson said that screening and early detection was critical as early traces of cancer could be treated effectively.
He said “I just lost my mother to cancer. We took her outside because Nigeria does have a standard cancer treatment centre. After her death, we took a decision to promote awareness creation about cancer, to promote campaigns for regular checks, early diagnosis and prompt treatment.
“We were thinking of setting up the Henry Seriake Dickson Foundation towards the end of my tenure but we are bringing it forward. The foundation would set up a cancer centre in honour of the memory of our late mother. We cannot have her back but we are determined to prevent others from suffering a similar fate.
“We solicit donations in different ways to build the centre.We want to do serious advocacy, and encourage people to do regular checks.
“Cancer is quietly decimating our people; we need to spread awareness, because early detection and treatment are important.”
The Governor also received a high powered delegation from the African Indepedent Television led by the Chairman Emeritus, High Chief Raymond Dokpesi.
The governor also urged the management of AIT to partner with the foundation to prevent the next avoidable death from cancer.
He lamented the absence of a standard cancer centre in the country.
Speaking earlier, Dokpesi said that cancer was ravaging families in Nigeria because of the secretive attitude of Nigerians to medical cases.
He commended the governor for the establishment of the world class Bayelsa Diagnostic Centre and other medical facilities in the state.
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