MANZINI, 20 September 2010 (PlusNews) – Kaposi’s sarcoma (KS), an HIV-related cancer, may not make headlines in southern Africa, but dealing with this disfiguring and potentially deadly illness presents a daunting task for health workers. How to administer chemotherapy at a small rural clinic is just one of the many difficulties faced by health workers treating patients with KS at 10 health facilities run by international medical charity, Medicines Sans Frontiers (MSF) in the Chiradzulu district of southern Malawi. Other challenges are the lack of infrastructure and safety equipment for injection-driven chemotherapy, poor case management and problematic drug supplies, MSF... Continue Reading
NAIROBI, 16 September 2010 (PlusNews) – A new one-hour test for tuberculosis will only have an impact in the global fight against the disease if it is made affordable to poor countries, experts say. “If it comes out and costs a million dollars, then clearly it won’t be feasible; it needs to be cheap enough for poor countries to use widely,” said Mario Raviglione, director of the World Health Organization’s Stop TB Department. The one-hour test, developed by the UK’s Health Protection Agency (HPA) follows the recent announcement of a two-hour “Xpert MTB/RIF test” for TB. According to the HPA,... Continue Reading
By Own Correspondent – On September 13, Dr. Janice Shaw Crouse, Ph.D., a member of the World Congress of Families Management Committee, participated in a press conference of organizations opposed to California Proposition 19, a referendum which would legalize marijuana in the state. The press conference took place at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. Dr. Crouse released the following statement: “Over the past four decades, liberal ideas and values have often prevailed in the competition with traditional values and ideas. My work documents the disastrous consequences suffered by several generations of our nation’s children as a result of... Continue Reading
By Susan Anyangu-Amu –NAIROBI (IPS) – When a doctor instructs a patient to take one tablet three times a day, she often has no way to ensure the instructions are followed. Many stop taking their medication once they feel they have regained their strength – specially when the course of treatment lasts for months. When the medicine is for a highly infectious disease like tuberculosis, defaulting on treatment can have serious consequences. Daniel Ngetich and Patrick Kipngetich are presently cooling their heels in a government of Kenya prison; unless a court orders otherwise, they will remain there for eight months... Continue Reading
By Nawa Mutumweno (Zambia) – It boggles the mind to note that one could be in Zambia but would end up flying, eating, banking and shopping South African and then retire to a South African hotel to watch South African television. This brings into sharp focus how deep inroads the African economic giant has made into the affairs of its neighbors and beyond. The collapse of apartheid in 1994 opened up South Africa to the rest of the world. It also opened the rest of Africa to South Africa. Apart from the rise in exports of goods to other African... Continue Reading
