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85% of kids with leukaemia survive

Up to 60 new cases of cancer in children are reported in Dubai each year of which majority are leukaemia cases, according to a senior health official from DHA.

Asma Ali Zain

Published: Fri 2 Mar 2012, 12:27 AM

Last updated: Fri 3 Apr 2015, 4:53 PM

DUBAI - Up to 60 new cases of cancer in children are reported in Dubai each year of which majority are leukaemia (blood cancer) cases, according to a senior health official from Dubai Health Authority.

‘She is a tough girl’

Eight-year-old Emirati, Maha Abdulla is the only known surviving patient in the UAE suffering from chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML) which is an uncommon type of cancer of the blood cells. Only four per cent of people in the world suffer from this kind of cancer, explains Maha’s mother, Mahasin Abdulla.

Shy but very friendly, Maha took the opportunity, at the congress, to thank the Rulers and doctors for their continuous support towards her treatment. “She is a tough girl,” says her mother explaining that Maha was diagnosed with the cancer at eight months. “I panicked when the doctors here said they could do nothing to treat her and referred her to Germany,” she said.

“After undergoing treatment for over a year, doctors told me my daughter would die and I said only Allah knows the time of death,” said Mahasin. It was only after much research and resolve that she decided upon getting her child treated at MD Anderson Cancer Centre in Houston where Maha is undergoing a form of chemotherapy and her cancer is in remission. “She misses going to school since she is required to travel every three months, but we hope she can catch up soon,” says Mahasin. Maha will be required to take medicine lifelong. Only a bone marrow transplant can cure her permanently.

asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com

Due to improved treatment and better care today, 85 per cent of children with leukaemia survive, said Dr Abdulrahman Mohammad Al Jassmi, Head of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Dubai Hospital during the two-day 5^th Arab Children Health Congress that started on Wednesday.

The theme of this year’s congress is ‘Childhood Cancer: Towards a Positive Approach’ which aims to highlight pediatric cancers on a local and regional level and to raise public awareness about the need for early intervention.

Currently, 700 children are undergoing treatment at Dubai Hospital that is among the three hospitals that offer treatment to children in the UAE. “Fortunately, cancer incidents in the Arab world are not as high (80 to 100 cases per 100,000) as in the West where 400 cases per 100,000 people are reported,” said the doctor. Leukaemia makes up 45 per cent of all cancers in children followed by lymphoma and brain tumours.

Dr Al Jassmi said: “Thirty years ago, leukaemia used to cause the death of more than 50 per cent of patients with this disease, within six months of diagnosis. Today, with several forms of treatments available, ranging from chemotherapy to radiotherapy, there has been a high decline in mortality rates. For example, the success rate for cases of lymphoma is now 90 per cent, which is a significant improvement.”

“Cost of treatment is high and in some cases patients can have to pay up to Dh100,000 for a two year treatment,” said the doctor. Treatment, however, is free for Emiratis.

No single factor triggers cancer. “Smoking is one cause of cancer and research says that Arab children start smoking at an early age,” said Dr Abdulla Al Nasser, Consultant at King Faisal Specialist Hospital, Saudi Arabia while calling for prevention. “Cancer care in Arab countries varies and is not optimal,” he added.

Dr Elissar Sarrouh, UN Resident Coordinator and UNDP Resident Representative in the UAE said that children living with cancer should have access to comprehensive healthcare including provision of psycho-social support and counseling services for them and their families.

Qadhi Al Murooshid, Director General of Dubai Health Authority pointed out that the Al Jalila Children’s Specialty Hospital, once operational, will provide state-of-the-art pediatric care to patients in the UAE and the region.

asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com