et July-August issue low

et Guide | Health
New Hope for
Cancer Management
Pfizer presents latest advances and breakthroughs in cancer care during
its 14th Africa and Middle East Oncology Summit.
On the back of the successful completion of its
14th Africa and Middle East (AfME) Oncology
Summit, Pfizer announced the latest advances
and breakthroughs in cancer care to improve
patient lives. The annual three-day education and interactive
forum brought together around 100 professionals, including
medical oncologists, regional speakers, and international
speakers from USA, Spain, Italy, and France. The
meeting focused on treatment advances offered in breast
cancer, genitourinary cancer, and non-small-cell lung cancer
management.
The prevalence of breast cancer, genitourinary cancer
and lung cancer tumors has reached up to 40% of all cancers
in specific geographies across Africa and the Middle
East. “Oncology remains a key therapeutic field for Pfizer
in which we are working to deliver medical breakthroughs
that have the potential to change patients’ lives across the
region significantly,” said Dr. Hatem El-Kadi, Regional
Oncology Medical Lead, Pfizer AfME. “This year, the Pfizer
AfME Oncology Summit explored new ways to bring a
greater degree of personalization of treatment and optimal
patient management hence, offering new horizons and
hope for patients suffering from cancers.”
Prof. Marwan Ghosn, Chairman of Hematology-Oncology
Department, Faculty of Medicine, Saint Joseph University,
Beirut, Lebanon, spoke about recent breakthroughs
in cancer research. “The treatment landscape of advanced
kidney cancer has dramatically evolved in the past three to
four years. Immunotherapy combinations have become the
new standard of care in the first-line setting. It is helping
control and destroy cancer cells, alone or in combination
with other targeted therapies. Such advances are enabling
us to tailor patient treatment based on tumor characteristics
and thereby improve patient outcomes,” he explained.
Prof. Yasser Salah Eldin Sayed Abd El Kader, Director
of Oncology Center, Faculty of Medicine, Cairo University,
Egypt, added, “Sharing real-world data, breakthroughs,
and concrete methods to fight cancer is crucial. We must
continue working together as members of the healthcare
ecosystem to ensure that we use the best management approaches
to support the millions of patients affected across
the region. In lung cancer research, recent revolutions in
diagnostic testing of Non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC),
and clinical trials of second generation targeted therapies
22 JULY-AUGUST 2021