Martinique to Supply Radiopharmaceuticals to Guyana
An oncology centre in Martinique has offered to supply radiopharmaceuticals to Guyana, officials said at a cancer-survivor celebration co-hosted by the Lotus Cancer Initiative and Guyana's Ministry of Health. Ministers and survivors emphasised expanded screening, free biopsies and regional partnerships aimed at improving cancer care across the Caribbean.
An oncology centre in Martinique that manufactures radiopharmaceuticals has told Guyanese health officials it is ready to send isotopes to doctors in Guyana for use against certain cancers, health officials reported at a recent ceremony celebrating cancer survivors. The event, co-sponsored by the Lotus Cancer Initiative Inc and Guyana's Ministry of Health, featured testimonies from two prostate cancer survivors and several breast and cervical cancer survivors.
Speakers praised the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation's Oncology Department and credited the Guyana government with providing free treatment and laboratory tests that have been critical to their care. Alyson Chester, who lives in St Lucia, described the financial relief of receiving free tests and treatment in Guyana, saying that in St Lucia she would have had to pay for every blood test.
Survivor Aubrey Knight urged men over 40 to take a prostate-specific antigen or PSA test, stressing that screening is now a simple blood test rather than a digital rectal exam. Health Minister Dr Anthony said the government is seeing greater male participation in screening programmes but urged men to overcome reluctance and get tested earlier.
He also outlined plans to expand mammography centres countrywide and to increase human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine coverage, currently at about 69 percent, with a goal of reaching 100 percent to help eliminate cervical cancer. Dr Anthony added that Guyana now offers free biopsies, removing fees that could be as high as US$100, and is building external partnerships with international cancer institutions including UT MD Anderson, the Pan American Health Organization, the National Cancer Institute of India and a paediatric cancer centre in Colombia.
Lotus Cancer Initiative CEO Dr Shivani Samlall said the organisation supports the Ministry of Health by promoting education, prevention, early detection and patient support. She described the group as a community of survivors, families, healthcare professionals and volunteers working to reduce preventable cancers and improve cancer care.
Relevance to the British Virgin Islands: small territories often face limited access to specialised diagnostics and therapies such as radiopharmaceuticals. Regional offers of supply, strengthened intergovernmental partnerships and expanded screening programmes in neighbouring territories could improve availability of services across the Eastern Caribbean, subject to regulatory, transport and clinical arrangements.
BVI residents who travel regionally for healthcare or who monitor Caribbean health initiatives should watch for further details on timelines, access routes and safety arrangements for the transport and use of radioactive medicines. According to Virgin Islands News Online, discussions between Guyana and Martinique took place in recent months and the offer to send isotopes is part of ongoing efforts to broaden cancer treatment options in the region.
Primary source: VINO