Jirapa MP, Liver Cancer Foundation offer free liver cancer screenings to constituents

About 3,000 residents in the Jirapa Constituency have received free medical screening for various liver conditions.

The residents were screen for blood pressure, Hepatitis B and C testing, liver ultrasound, BMI, and medical consulting.

The free liver cancer screening was under the auspices of the Member of Parliament for Jirapa Constituency, Cletus Seidu Dapilah, in collaboration with the Liver Cancer Foundation and the Ghana Health Service (GHS).

Six (6) screening centres, Jirapa, Tizza, Tuggo, Hain, Ullo and Sabuli, were set up in the constituency to reach out to many constituents.

Mr Omar Mohammed, the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Zongo Caucus Coordinator for Jirapa Constituency, who represented the MP, in an interview with Info Radio in Hain on Friday July 26, 2024, said the free liver cancer screening came on the backdrop of a concern raised by the Jirapa Municipal Health Directorate about the rise in Hepatitis in the municipality.

He said, “Anytime the MP visits the constituency from parliament, he engages various stakeholders including staff of the Ghana Health Service. He met the Health Director for Jirapa Municipality in one of the visits and she raised concern that a lot of people are getting Hepatitis B in the municipality but they do not realize it.”

“The MP assured the Health Director that when he returns to Accra, he will speak to the GHS to see how he can support bringing some relief to his constituents.

“It was in line with that that he spoke to the Liver Cancer Foundation and they collaborated with the GHS to come to the constituency to offer this free health screening,” he added.

Mr Mohammed stated that the screening is free and nonpartisan. He also mentioned that non-constituents residing in the constituency can also participate in the free liver cancer screening.

Madam Florence Angsomwine, the Jirapa Municipal Health Director, commended the Member of Parliament for the intervention. She noted that the health directorate will use the data from the screening to prescribe medication for those who tested positive for any of the diseases they screened.

“When we get support like what the MP is doing, we will say it helps us a lot. After the screening, we can detect some diseases the people are suffering from but may not report them to the hospital. They will also share the results with us so that we can prescribe medication for those who tested positive and be able to do follow-ups on them.”

She added that the Health Directorate would also know some diseases the people were suffering from but may not report to the hospital.

Mr James Mckeown Amoah, Director of Outreach Services for the Liver Cancer Foundation, said the Liver Cancer Foundation was established in 2018 to help screen and know people who have liver cancer and get them treated.

He said the foundation also undertakes research into what is causing liver cancer in various jurisdictions.

Mr Amoah explained that the foundation is screening 18 communities in the Upper West Region, six (6) each in the Sissala West, Jirapa and Nadowli Kaleo Constituencies in collaboration with their Members of Parliament.

He stated that the results so far revealed a lot more people are testing positive for hepatitis B and C in the region, particularly in the Jirapa Municipality and Sissala West District.

Mr Amoah mentioned that Hepatitis B is mainly spread through blood and body fluids, “so when you have unprotected sex with somebody who has Hepatitis B, when you come into contact with somebody’s blood that can also cause an infection.”

He continued, “Another important one is mother to child. A woman is pregnant, she is Hepatitis B positive but she doesn’t know and so she will pass to the child, the child will also pass to someone.”

He also mentioned that aflatoxins found in grains like corn and groundnuts can also lead to liver cancer.

Mr Amoah advised residents to be responsible with their sex life and also take the Hepatitis B injection to protect them against the disease.