We would like to invite you to familiarise yourself with the 5th edition of the nationwide educational campaign "Pokonać Raka" published by Medical Media Solutions, which runs under the slogan "Build your immunity". We are a Campaign Partner and, especially for our readers, the publication "Pokonać Raka", which was published on 16 September together with the Rzeczpospolita daily and on dbajozdrowie.info, is available online.
The publication opens with a statement from Professor Jacek Fijuth, MD, President of the Polish Cancer Society, who explains why the increasing incidence of cancer is a great challenge for all of us and why we should know as much as possible about proper prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
Prof. Dr. Piotr Wysocki, President of the Polish Society of Clinical Oncology, comments on gastric cancer, which remains one of the most common causes of cancer deaths worldwide. The incidence is similar in all European countries, but the death rate is higher in relatively poorer countries. This is mainly due to lower awareness and poorer conditions of access to diagnosis and appropriate treatment. It is important to ensure that patients with advanced gastric cancer have access to appropriate treatment to prolong their life with maximum quality of life.
We talk to renowned actor Jan Kobuszewski, who will receive the Norwid Lifetime Achievement Award for his life's work at a gala on 26 September in Warsaw. As he points out, he has been actively living with a stoma for 30 years. It has not caused any great changes in his lifestyle. Prof. Jacek Fijuth explains that nowadays access to appropriate stoma equipment is easier, but we must remember that every patient should be well prepared psychologically for their new life.
Invited experts from patient organisations that have been working for years to improve oncology care in Poland spoke about the challenges of Polish oncology. Szymon Chrostowski - President of the Coalition of Oncology Patients, Elżbieta Kozik - President of the organisation Polskie Amazonki Ruch Społeczny (Polish Amazons Social Movement), dr n. med. Janusz Meder - President of the Polish Union of Oncology and the team from the Rak'n'Roll Foundation gave their presentations.
In an interview, Professor Tadeusz Pieńkowski, MD, President of the Polish Breast Cancer Society, explains that there is an awareness among women of the benefits of prevention. However, a major limitation to access to prophylaxis is financial and administrative difficulties. We must remember that by detecting breast cancer early, we can treat it much more effectively than if it were detected at an advanced stage. Today, we can see that the quality of prevention, diagnosis and treatment gives us effective tools to fight breast cancer. Nowadays, we can use a new additional method, which gives a chance of non-invasive, effective and not determined by the age of patients. It is a home-based breast cancer prevention system created by Polish scientists. "I hope that the emergence of this new solution will help sensitise women towards regular breast examination in addition to standard diagnostic methods," emphasises Paweł Basta, MD, PhD, from the Jagiellonian University's Collegium Medicum in Krakow.
This is the first time we have addressed the subject of rehabilitation, which is becoming an integral part of the treatment process in oncological diseases. Proper, comprehensive rehabilitation can only be carried out in centres with trained and experienced staff, i.e. doctors, physiotherapists and psychologists specialising in this field. Expert support in this area was provided by Ewa Rybicka, M.Sc., Head of the Spa Health Institute, and Adam Rybicki, M.Sc., Medical Director of Przedsiębiorstwo Uzdrowiskowe 'Ustroń' S.A.
Every day there is a competition going on in our body that we are not aware of. It is a struggle between oxidants and antioxidants. It is on the balance of these molecules that our health depends. In an educational article, Konrad Gaca, obesity expert and creator of the GACA SYSTEM method for smart weight loss, explains the impact of coenzyme Q10 in the prevention of cancer.
Also worth mentioning is an interview with Prof. Krzysztof Kalwak, MD, PhD, from the Clinic for Paediatric Bone Marrow Transplantation, Oncology and Haematology in Wrocław, who explains that thanks to the collection of cord blood stem cells at birth and their storage, we are able to act for the benefit and health of patients much better than in the past. The main advantage of cord blood is that it does not require less HLA compatibility than stem cells from bone marrow or peripheral blood.
The first brachytherapy treatment for prostate cancer was performed at the Amethyst Radiotherapy Centre in Kraków on 6 September this year. We talk about the importance of innovative solutions in medicine with Dr Marcin Hetnal, MD, director of the facility, which operates in cooperation with the L. Rydygier Specialist Hospital in Krakow. Brachytherapy gives very good results in the case of tumours of the head and neck, skin or, last but not least, the prostate. In the case of the latter, it is sometimes an alternative to difficult surgical removal.
We also recommend an interview with Prof. Jan Lubinski of the Hereditary Cancer Diagnostic and Treatment Centre of the Pomeranian Medical University in Szczecin, who speaks about ovarian cancer, which is diagnosed in 3,500 women. Unfortunately, of this number - 2,500 die. The next instalment of the National Public Campaign "Ovarian Diagnosis, Your Story Doesn't Have to Be Malignant" is being launched on 27 September. Actress Anna Korcz and her daughter have become ambassadors of the campaign.
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Strategic partners: Polish Cancer Society, Polish Coalition of Oncology Patients.
Media partners: medonet.pl, zwrotnikraka.pl, rynekzdrowia.pl, forumonkologiczne.pl, onkologia-online.pl, Termedia.
Partners: Polish Union of Oncology, Rak'n'Roll Foundation, Flower of Womanhood, Polish Amazons Social Movement, Institute for Patient Rights and Health Education, Amethyst Radiotherapy Centre, Braster, Eli Lilly Poland, Polish Bank of Stem Cells, Ustroń Health Resort, ConvaTec, GACA System, Rokoko, Pokonaj Raka Foundation.