Anakalusugan Partylist Rep. Ray T. Reyes is calling for more specialized centers in provinces after a recent study showed that the Philippines has one of the lowest screening rates of breast and cervical cancer.
“Marami sa ating mga kababayan sa probinsya ang walang access sa specialized medical services sa mga sakit na gaya ng cancer,” he said.
The solon filed House Bill No. 3134 of the “Regional Specialty Hospitals Act” to give people access to hospitals providing specialized healthcare services including cancer care.
“We need to make these accessible to people in the provinces and unburden them from the unnecessary travel and other expenses in order for them to avail of these much-needed services,” he added.
The lawmaker cited a study conducted by the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) which showed that only about 1 percent or 540,000 out of 54 million women undergo cancer screening.
“Naungusan na tayo ng mga kapitbahay natin sa ASEAN gaya ng Cambodia at Myanmar na may mas mataas na cancer screening rate. Ang nakakalungkot pa, sa Malaysia at Thailand, umabot na sa 20 percent ang kanilang screening rate,” he also said.
Reyes said that there is a need to address the low cancer screening rate in the country because in most cases, patients go for screening only when they are already in the late stages of the disease.
The solon filed House Bill No. 3134 of the “Regional Specialty Hospitals Act” to give people access to hospitals providing specialized healthcare services including cancer care.
Under the proposed bill, branches of specialty centers such as the Philippine Cancer Center, Philippine Children’s Medical Center, the Philippine Heart Center, the Lung Center of the Philippines, and the National Kidney and Transplant Institute (NKTI) will be established across the country.
“Ang pagbibigay ng libreng diagnostic test ay malaking tulong para maiwasan ang paglala ng mga sakit gaya ng cancer,” he said.
“We should bring these specialty centers closer to our people and reassure our kababayans that wherever you are in the Philippines, you can have access to affordable, specialized care,” Reyes added.
