Location: Basrah
Timing: April - August 2005 (in progress)
Budget: $71,492 (total budget: $376,150)
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The incidences of childhood cancers have grown at an alarming rate in Iraq since 1990, especially in the Southern Governorates. A recent study found Iraq to have 8 to 10 times the rate of childhood cancers found in Western countries.
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Basrah Heath Authority reports an 842% increase in the number of cancers in children in the governorate between 1990 and 2002 (a 465% increase in the incidence rate per 100,000).
| Year | Children < 15 Year | No. of Malignancy | Incidence Rate / 100,000 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | 476,549 | 19 | 3.98 |
| 1995 | 459,234 | 36 | 7.83 |
| 1999 | 605,045 | 65 | 10.70 |
| 2002 | 863,909 | 160 | 18.50 |
- The proposed intervention will target the Cancer Pediatric Unit of the Ibn Ghazwan Pediatric and Gynecology Hospital in Basra. This hospital, the only cancer center for children in the South, is the referral center for cancer cases in the governorates of Basra, Thi-Qar, Missan and Muthanna.
- This project will provide urgently needed assistance through three integrated components:
- Supply of essential diagnostic and therapeutic equipment
- Staff training
- Physical rehabilitation of the hospital
- The objectives are to:
- Improve overall patient care
- Increase the survival rate of children with cancer through early detection and treatment