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– Interview by Hajar EL FAKER –
Rabat, 22/11/2020 (MAP) – Excessive consumption of red and processed meats (cured meats, dried meats, etc.), sugar and alcohol promote certain types of cancer, said oncologist-radiotherapist, Majdouline Khounigere, of the International Oncology Center in Casablanca.
“On the contrary, balanced meals rich in fibers associated with physical exercise are a protective element,” he stressed in an interview with the MAP, on the occasion of the National Day to fight cancer. , Celebrated on November 22 each year, noting that the anti-cancer diet aims to integrate all the nutrients with antioxidant able to limit the growth of cancer cells.
It also indicated that there is currently no preventive diet against cancer, which requires the adoption of good habits and a healthy lifestyle and the discovery of a certain nutritional balance. practicing regular physical activity.
Dr. Khounigere also specified that the celebration of the National Day is an opportunity to raise awareness of the importance of early diagnosis and to highlight new therapeutic advances, as well as to convey a message of hope to those suffering from this disease.
Referring to the progress made by Morocco in recent years, he said that the Kingdom has experienced a meteoric evolution in the treatment of cancer, both in terms of chemotherapy molecules, vaporized intraperitoneal chemotherapy or intraperitoneal hyperthermic therapy, targeted therapy therapies, immunotherapy, surgical techniques and stereotaxic radiation therapy thus increasing the survival rate.
“We also have the + Novalis Truebeam STX + at the International Oncology Center in Casablanca which allows for very high precision targeted radiotherapy,” he insisted, adding that Morocco is part of a process. in the fight against cancer, in particular with the National Cancer Prevention and Control Plan (PNPCC) which has made it possible to build and reorganize several regional cancer centers, thus facilitating access to treatment.
Stressing the importance of early diagnosis in the treatment of all types of cancer, the specialist said it improves prognosis and the chances of recovery, noting that the cancers of the best prognosis, that is, the least aggressive, are testicular cancer and prostate cancer with a survival rate of more than 80%.
“In Morocco, the most common cancers are breast cancer in women and lung cancer in men with 48,000 new cases of cancer of all types registered every year,” he added.
Regarding the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on cancer patients, the doctor said devices have been put in place in the various oncology centers to protect patients and nursing staff and to be able to continue a normal pace. consultation, treatment and follow-up, begging for an early diagnosis that saves lives.
The World Health Organization (WHO) had recently launched a strategy to eliminate cervical cancer, he recalled, considering that thanks to generalized access to vaccination, screening and with treatment, 5 million lives would be saved by 2050.
“Delete the cancer would have seemed an impossible dream before, but today we have effective tools, inexpensive and evidence-based to achieve that dream,” said the director. General of the Organization, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
The WHO strategy aims to vaccinate 90% of girls against human papillomavirus (responsible for cervical cancer) by age 15. It is also expected that 70% of women will be screened by the age of 35 and 45 and that 90% of women diagnosed with cervical disease will be treated.
If these measures are successfully implemented by 2030, new cases of the disease could be reduced by more than 40% and the number of disease-related deaths by 5 million by 2050. Furthermore, according to a study recently published in the medical journal British BMJ, delaying cancer treatment for one month can increase the risk of death by 6 to 13%. This investigation reinforces the conclusions of other research warning about the deleterious effects of the Covid-19 pandemic for other diseases.
British and Canadian researchers analyzed the consequences of delayed treatment (surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, etc.) for seven types of cancer, based on 34 studies published over the past twenty years.
Outside of the pandemic, “treatment delays are an exception, but they can still affect 10-15% of patients,” explained oncologist Ajay Aggarwal, one of the study’s authors.
And the longer the delay, the greater the risk, the study authors say, noting that postponing the operation by 12 weeks for all women with breast cancer who require surgery, such as in Covid-19-related restraints. , for example, would result in 6,100 more deaths in one year in the United States and 1,400 in the United Kingdom.
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