Ikeja Exclusive Lions Club, Ikeja Platinum Lions Club Intensify campaign against Childhood Cancers

Lions Club members in a group photograph with pupils of Oregun Junior High School during awareness campaign against childhood cancers organised by Ikeja Exclusive Lions Club in Lagos.

Ikeja Exclusive Lions Club and Ikeja Platinum Lions Club  under the International Association of Lions Club, District 404B2 Nigeria have taken the awareness campaign on the eradication of paediatric or childhood cancers to schools in Lagos and its environs.

On Wednesday, September 12, 2018, the two clubs jointly organized a health talk to the pupils of Oregun Junior High School, along Kudirat Abiola Way, Ikeja, Lagos to educate them on the dangers of cancers.

They also make donations including writing materials, framed tips on awareness against Paediatric Cancers to both the pupils and the School authority.

Speaking on behalf of the Clubs, the Charter President, Ikeja Exclusive Lions Club, Lion Esther Gabriel Odehohwo, enjoined the wealthy Nigerians both individuals and corporate organizations to reach out to the needy in their immediate communities and render a helping hand just as she called on them to imbibe the philanthropist life style in order to impact their communities positively.

“I want to implore other Nigerians, both individuals and corporate citizens who have not been opportuned to reach-out to the needy to do so. This is a very worthy cause. Even if they do not belong to any humanitarian organization where they can help the less privilege, at their own time and volition, they can always reach out to the needy in their own immediate environment if they really want to do so, because we were all created to be our brothers’ keeper.

“Because even amongst our immediate communities, there are a lot of people who cannot afford a square meal a day not to talk about taking care of their health. There are some that have been abandoned in the hospital. It is very pathetic when you enter some hospitals and you see them in greater number both adult and children,” she said.

Giving reasons for the awareness campaign on Paediatric Cancers or Childhood Cancers, she said the month of September is the month for awareness on cancer, adding that the campaign is to enable the pupils know some of the prevalence symptoms and signs of cancers and what to do when noticed.

“The reason we are giving this awareness today is to educate the pupils on dangers of cancers and when they get home, they can also educate their parents on the effects of having cancer. We are here today to tell them what they should look out for, how they will be able to take care of themselves in order to avoid having cancer because prevention is cheaper than cure,” she said.

The Charter President said one of the core activities of the Lions Clubs District 404 B2 Nigeria, for 2018/2019 Lions year is eradication of Childhood Cancers through consistent and sustained awareness campaigns.

“Cancer awareness campaign is one of the key activities for all the Lions Clubs in 2018/2019 Lions year, so that is the reason we have taken it up to see that we educate children and parents alike on dangers of childhood cancers. To ensure we reach as many children and parents as possible in the world, we have over 260 countries where Lions Clubs exist, it has been stated that Childhood Cancers should be one of the key activities that should be carried out. So it is mandatory for every Lions Clubs to meet schools around their catchment areas and educate the pupils. The reason we are doing this in this school today is because this school is around our catchment areas as Ikeja Exclusive Lions Club. So I believe that other schools that are not around this area can still benefit from our activities from other Lions Clubs that are around their areas.

“Apart from Childhood Cancers Awareness Campaign which we have just rounded-up, we have other activities lined-up for the year including diabetes awareness, feeding the needy, taking care of the environment comprising sanitation and tree planting. We have restoration of sight which takes care of eyes screening, treatment, surgery and donation of eye classes,” She explained.

She said for them to achieve their set goals a fund raising ceremony is on course and called for support from all and sundry during the event slated for October 28 this year.

“Ikeja Lions Club will be having her fund raising ceremony on October 28, 2018 at Presken Hotel and Resort, 17 Alade Avenue, Off Awolowo Way, Ikeja, Lagos. We use this opportunity to call on Nigerians both individual and corporate organization to support our cause in the service to humanity.

Delivering a talk on Paediatric or Childhood Cancers, Dr. (Mrs) Okunowo, a Paediatrician with Ameso Specialist Hospital, Lagos, emphasized on the dangers of childhood cancers, symptoms and signs and enjoined the parents to always take their children to hospital whenever they notice any signs of abnormalities.

She also called on government to do more in the area of cancer eradication even as she advocated for subsidised drugs for cancer treatment in order to lessen the suffering of parents of children with cancers in our society.

“September is the month for childhood cancer awareness and the prevalence of cancer is very high. Now 700 new cancers in children are diagnosed every day; 260,000 cases per year and out of these, 25 per cent of these children die and the impact of cancer is so much because if affects the family, the siblings and the parents because their life usually not the same when their child is diagnosed with cancer and cancer does not discriminate because it affects everyone.

“It affects at early age. It also affects adults. Here we are going to concentrate on childhood cancers being the subject for today. There are cancers that are peculiar to children under two years; there are some that are peculiar to children between two and 14 years and it affects any part of the body. These include brain cancer that affects the brain; the eyes cancer that affects the eyes; cancer affecting the stomach, abdomen – everywhere; there are bone cancer and even blood cancer. Blood cancer is pretty common – common because it causes a lot of economic problems and financial issues for parents because the children are always bleeding, they are pale and tired always having constant infection because their bone marrows are depressed.

The cause of cancers is unknown but there are some risk factors. These risk factors are genetic factors: some of them have genes mutation inherited from their parents. Some are caused by exposure to radiation. Some radiation could be from current x-rays, some from the treatment of other types of cancers, and they now develop secondary cancers. Some infections like Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Hepatitis B can expose children to cancers also children with Down Syndrome (DS) can be predisposed to cancers.

The symptoms to look out for in cancers, according to her, include fever of unknown origin, children that are pale and always tired, children with early morning vomiting, children with unexplained weight loss or a child with bleeding gums or the one that bleeds from the nostrils and other different symptoms including abnormalities.

She said the key to timely intervention is early diagnosis “because with early diagnoses, one will be able to identify the case on time and treat,” adding that “prognosis is improved with early diagnoses. So what we say is that we want everyone to be aware of the symptoms and signs to look out for and whenever any of the signs is noticed in their children, that child should be taken to the hospital for investigation and treatment.”

Dr. (Mrs.) Okunowo called on government to subsidise cancer drugs, step up awareness campaign as well as provide adequate drugs and equipment in the hospitals in order to ameliorate the suffering of parents of children with cancers.