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Cancer society wants more women to get tested

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Written by CBC NEWS Thursday, 13 June 2013 12:44

More women in Barbados are being encouraged to get tested for cervical cancer.

This appeal was made by the president of the Barbados Cancer Society Dorothy Cooke-Johnson following the launch of the e- petition against cervical cancer.

She explained that less than half of the approximately sixty thousand women in the country are regularly tested for the disease.

Ms Cooke-Johnson said these numbers should be higher as tests for the disease are done free of cost at polyclinics while the Cancer Society does them for sixty dollars.

The president of the Cancer Society is also concerned with the number of deaths from cervical cancer.

Cancer petition

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Written by CBC NEWS Wednesday, 12 June 2013 12:48

The first electronic petition against cervical cancer has been launched in Barbados.

Through the petition, the Barbados Cancer Society and the Healthy Caribbean Coalition will be seeking to get five million signatures to request that Caribbean governments provide women with access to affordable cancer screening.

Speaking at the official launch, one of the directors of the Cancer Society Dr Vikash Chantrani explained that even though cervical cancer is preventable it is the second major cause of death for women in the Caribbean.

President of the National Organisation of Women Marilyn Rice-Bowen endorsed the initiative and appealed for women of all ages to get tested.

The petition can be signed at the website www.endcervicalcancernow.org

New laws create mosquito breeding areas

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Written by CBC NEWS Wednesday, 12 June 2013 11:09

The Environmental Health Department appears to be facing an uphill battle in controlling mosquito breeding in Barbados, which has been linked to a stark increase in dengue fever cases this year.

Up to May there were 297 dengue fever cases, 100 more that the number recorded for the same period in 2012.

The acting chief environmental health officer, Desmond King explains that the increasing number of homes now mandated to have water catchments is now creating additional breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

He tells CBC News that the environmental health officers and the Vector Control Unit are working with Town and Country Planning Department to address the situation.

Fogging in response to dengue threat

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Written by CBC NEWS Monday, 10 June 2013 12:11

Chief medical officer, Dr. Joy St. John says a dangerous situation is developing where more underground sites are becoming breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

And she's urging Barbadians to unearth them where ever possible.

According to her, many of these underground junction boxes belong to the Barbados Light and Power and LIME.

Dr. St. John says investigations over the last three months show that 11 percent of the BL&P's manholes and 19 percent of LIME's underground sites have tested positive for mosquito breeding.

A major fogging campaign will be launched Monday in Christ Church.

This in response to the alarming number of dengue fever cases reported in that parish and the increasing number of complaints coming to the Ministry of Health over the past few weeks.

The vector control unit will start fogging in Worthing, then head into Rendezvous, Rockley, Deighton and Silver Sands.

Environmental health assistant, Shane Kirton, is the man responsible for planning the island wide fogging programme.

So far there have been 297 dengue fever cases recorded in Barbados up to May, 100 more than for the same period last year.

There's also been one death linked to the illness.

Environment minister, Dr Denis Lowe says a full inspection is planned for Barbados' drainage system.

He also praised the workers in the drainage division for the work they have done so far.

Dr Lowe says staff in the environment ministry are mindful that the hurricane season has started and will ensure that drains are functioning to their fullest capacity.

He also gave the assurance that workers will continue to focus on the flooding hot spots across the island.