Yemi Akinsuyi/
The Nigeria Police has launched a free prostate cancer screening and treatment for its men who are 40 years old and above.
The medical intervention was in partnership with the Stanley Medical Foundation and sponsored by the Imo State governor, Sen Hope Uzodimma.
Inspector-General of Police, IGP Mohammed Adamu, who flagged off the 14-day intervention at the Force Headquarters, Abuja on Thursday said without a healthy police organization, the country could never be secured.
Adamu said that given the nature and pressure of police work, it was imperative they got medical attention constantly and checked themselves to know some of the diseases that could bring them down to the level that they would not be able to perform their critical duties.
“When we constantly check ourselves, then we can have preventive measures so that the investment the country has on us would not be in vain, because if we are taken down by diseases, we would not be able to perform our duties. For that reason, we must have the platform and capacity to be checking ourselves,” he said.
Adamu added that any disease affecting the prostate could kill, “but when one checks oneself constantly, at least every three months, then it can be controlled”.
He said, “But when you go about without knowing, the tendency is that the disease is there and you would not know until it becomes bad and then you come to realize and spend more money to treat it than you would have spent, if checked earlier.
“Today’s event is one that would help us identify whether we have such a disease or not. If we have it then, we start treatment immediately. If we don’t have it, we take precautions and know those things we need to do in order not to have the disease. I encourage every officer over 40 years to present themselves for the screening. It is free. If you do the screening and you have it, it would be better than not doing it but then you still have it. Then you would be in trouble later. I encourage all to present themselves for the screening.
“Already within the police, we have a very strong medical section that has the capacity of not only checking police officers on a daily basis but even their families and members of the public. But for us to improve on what we have, there is there need for partnership with any health organizations to keep our officers fit. What we are doing is important to the health of our officers.”
Founder of the Stanley Medical Foundation, Dr Stanley Boniface, said they focused on prostate cancer because “it is a leading cause of death among men worldwide, but the awareness for the disease is very poor”.
Boniface, who also represented the Imo State governor, Hope Uzodimma, said, “One can have it and not be aware that one has it. Before you start developing symptoms, the cancer would already have advanced. So the way out is screening. If you don’t screen regularly, you would not know. By the time symptoms come, the cancer would already have advanced.
“Sadly, the awareness for this cancer is very poor. The aim of this outreach is to foster the awareness for prostate cancer screening and the ills associated with the disease.”
He expressed gratitude to the IGP for approving the programme in line with his health mantra, the Force Medical Team as well as the Governor Uzodimma for his sponsorship.
The Force Headquarters Chief Medical Officer, DCP Ogunsanwo Olubunmi, said the gesture was part of the IGP’s interventions for police officers to stay healthy, as they can only secure the nation if they are well.
Olubunmi said their survey in the police showed that the highest ranking non-communicable disease among police officers is hypertension, followed by diabetes, but they were now seeing an increasing pattern of prostate cancer and especially among the elderly male officers.
“Why we need to have this is that it gives us the opportunity to know where we are. When you check your prostate, you know whether there is a possibility of prostate enlargement or prostate cancer. But the earlier the better. This screening is coming at a very right time. This is an opportunity for every police officer in the Force Headquarters to have the opportunity to do the screening,” he said.
0