Military hospital to open first regional cancer centre

Rwanda Military Hospital will launch the region’s top a cancer centre next month, offering specialised treatment to patients battling the disease, Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) has revealed. Lt Col Pacifique Mugenzi, the Director General of the centre, is quoted as saying that the facility, which will be hosted at Rwanda Military Hospital (RMH) in Kanombe, incorporates the “latest oncology technology” ready to deliver a world-class cancer care service. “So far we are done with the construction and equipping the facility, I have no doubt by early January 2019 it will be operational. Today if I receive a patient I can treat him or her,” Mugenzi said in a statement. Rwanda Military Hospital will launch the region’s top a cancer centre next month The facility will have the capacity to receive 80 patients per day and will provide them and their families with more choices when planning their care. “This centre is expected to reduce reliance on international centres and it’s our firm confidence that Rwandans should have access to high cancer care as close to their homes as possible,” he added. For Rwandans, the development will eliminate the need to travel abroad for services that will be available in Rwanda for the first time. According to Lt Col Mugenzi, the radiotherapy centre is equipped with two Linear Accelerators from Elekta, and will be offering advanced treatment techniques with VMAT (Volumetric Modulated Arc Therapy) to all clients. He also mentioned that with cancer incidence on the rise, the figures indicate the need for additional cancer care services. The centre will provide advanced radiation therapy treatments. Radiation therapy services will be available to those with local insurance cover, including the universal insurance scheme locally known as Mutuelle de Santé. “It will provide comprehensive treatment to cancer patients. This centre is a great opportunity, it will be a regional centre that will serve people around the region,” he added. “In Rwanda, there are three well-known treatment options for cancer. Namely, chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy, so radiotherapy has been the unavailable option of the three options,” he said. The radiotherapy centre comes to supplement the existing chemotherapy facility available in Butaro Cancer Centre. In 2014, Rwanda Military Hospital, Kanombe, laid out plans to turn the hospital into a world-class facility. Among other things which were included in the refurbishment exercise included the construction of a special section for VIPs, at an estimated cost of Rwf1.8 billion. According to officials, the plan was to make the facility a regional medical hub, by conducting medical speciality clinics in transplant surgery, cardiology, oncology, orthopaedics, nephrology, neurosurgery, and paediatric cardiology. editorial@newtimes.co.rw

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Military hospital to open first regional cancer centre