Growing numbers of UAE residents attend free breast screenings

Increasing numbers of women are taking advantage of free breast screening to spot the signs of the world's most prevalent cancer, hospitals and campaigners said.

Zulekha Hospital launched a drive yesterday that offers free X-ray mammograms and consultations for the rest of this year, adding that almost 3,000 took advantage of a similar drive last year, up from 850 in 2014.

A similar ten-day campaign held in March by the Friends of Cancer Patients screened close to 7,500 people for breast cancer during the annual Pink Caravan ride across the country. In that time, 12 cases of malignant cancers were found during screenings, the most since 2011.

But the trend also casts the spotlight on the fact that free screenings are necessary, given medical insurance often does not cover such checks.

Zulekha announced a 59 per cent increase in women attending free screenings last year, compared with 2015, as part of its breast cancer campaign that is now in its sixth year.

“It is these staggering figures that reveal the important role of early detection in order to save the lives of women all over the world,” said Dr Pamela Munster, who is an ambassador of the Zulekha Hospital screening campaign.

“As healthcare professionals, it is our duty to better educate women in the UAE and empower them to take charge of their health.

“In doing so, the campaign helps to reduce breast cancer fatalities in the UAE.”

A similar ten-day campaign held in March by the Friends of Cancer Patients screened close to 7,500 people for breast cancer during the annual Pink Caravan ride across the country.

Health authorities aim to reduce cancer fatalities in the UAE by 18 per cent before 2021. A key component of that strategy is early detection, as 98 per cent of those with breast cancer survive, If detected early.

Basic health insurance however does not currently cover the cost of most cancer screenings and treatments, forcing many patients to go abroad for cancer related healthcare.

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Employers 'should not be able to fire a cancer patient'

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Women over 45, or younger women with a family history of breast cancer, are advised to have annual mammograms, or at least every other year.

Screening costs vary from Dh400 to Dh1350, with chemotherapy, surgery and radiotherapy sending costs rocketing if doctors diagnose breast cancer.

Zulekha Hospital’s ‘Pink It Now’ campaign aims to raise breast cancer awareness, the importance of early detection and the benefit of regular check-ups.

Out of 100,000 mammograms completed at Zulekha Hospital, doctors find abnormalities in about 100 cases.

Survivors shared their experiences just after the launch of an exclusive online cancer support forum named 'Pink Knights'.

The forum will continue to connect survivors who have battled against cancer and emerged successful to share their experiences.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 8.8 million people died from cancer globally, of which up to 30-50 per cent of cancers could be prevented and breast cancer is the top cancer in women across the world.

“We want to devote our time to raise awareness of breast cancer and honour the thousands of women across the region who have been diagnosed,” said Dr Hussain Abdul Rahman Al Rand, Assistant Undersecretary at the Ministry of Health and Prevention.

“It is part of our role in the government of the UAE to make more women aware of not just breast cancer, but also other forms of cancer.”

Rahma, the cancer patient care society, is one of a growing number of charities helping support those who may not be able to afford the costs of treatment and recovery.

It offers information on what support is available, and can help with financial support for those on a low income.

The society has access to a comprehensive database of the best medical centres and hospitals around the world, with information on costs and treatments available to patients.

"The cost of medicines and cancer care is high and, in some cases, insurance companies fall short," said Nora Al Suwaidi, director general of Cancer Patient Care Society - Rahma, speaking to The National last week.

“We have patients in labour camps, their family members and widows who can't even afford the ride to the hospital, let alone the high cost of treatment.

“Palliative care centres are also limited in the UAE. This requirement should be addressed by both government and private hospitals.”

A MINECRAFT MOVIE

Director: Jared Hess

Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa

Rating: 3/5

COMPANY%20PROFILE

%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EName%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESmartCrowd%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarted%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E2018%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EFounder%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiddiq%20Farid%20and%20Musfique%20Ahmed%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EBased%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EDubai%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ESector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EFinTech%20%2F%20PropTech%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInitial%20investment%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E%24650%2C000%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ECurrent%20number%20of%20staff%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%2035%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestment%20stage%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESeries%20A%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EInvestors%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EVarious%20institutional%20investors%20and%20notable%20angel%20investors%20(500%20MENA%2C%20Shurooq%2C%20Mada%2C%20Seedstar%2C%20Tricap)%3C%2Fp%3E%0A

The biog

First Job: Abu Dhabi Department of Petroleum in 1974
Current role: Chairperson of Al Maskari Holding since 2008
Career high: Regularly cited on Forbes list of 100 most powerful Arab Businesswomen
Achievement: Helped establish Al Maskari Medical Centre in 1969 in Abu Dhabi’s Western Region
Future plan: Will now concentrate on her charitable work

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets

The smuggler

Eldarir had arrived at JFK in January 2020 with three suitcases, containing goods he valued at $300, when he was directed to a search area.
Officers found 41 gold artefacts among the bags, including amulets from a funerary set which prepared the deceased for the afterlife.
Also found was a cartouche of a Ptolemaic king on a relief that was originally part of a royal building or temple.
The largest single group of items found in Eldarir’s cases were 400 shabtis, or figurines.

Khouli conviction

Khouli smuggled items into the US by making false declarations to customs about the country of origin and value of the items.
According to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, he provided “false provenances which stated that [two] Egyptian antiquities were part of a collection assembled by Khouli's father in Israel in the 1960s” when in fact “Khouli acquired the Egyptian antiquities from other dealers”.
He was sentenced to one year of probation, six months of home confinement and 200 hours of community service in 2012 after admitting buying and smuggling Egyptian antiquities, including coffins, funerary boats and limestone figures.

For sale

A number of other items said to come from the collection of Ezeldeen Taha Eldarir are currently or recently for sale.
Their provenance is described in near identical terms as the British Museum shabti: bought from Salahaddin Sirmali, "authenticated and appraised" by Hossen Rashed, then imported to the US in 1948.

- An Egyptian Mummy mask dating from 700BC-30BC, is on offer for £11,807 ($15,275) online by a seller in Mexico

- A coffin lid dating back to 664BC-332BC was offered for sale by a Colorado-based art dealer, with a starting price of $65,000

- A shabti that was on sale through a Chicago-based coin dealer, dating from 1567BC-1085BC, is up for $1,950

Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.

Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.

“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.

“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.

Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.

From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.

Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.

BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.

Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.

Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.

“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.

Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.

“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.

“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”

The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”