Earlier Wednesday, Mrs. Joyce Banda, the President of the Republic of Malawi, announced that an agreement has been signed to open an outpatient’s clinic at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital for the treatment of cancer and infectious diseases with US-based biotech firms TNI BioTech (TNIB) and GB Oncology & Imaging Group LLC (GBOIG).
Chronic infectious diseases are estimated to cause more than 20 percent of all cancers in the world, including liver, cervical, and gastric malignancies. Infection-related cancers are more frequent and often more severe in people infected with HIV. Cancer patient survival rates in Malawi are abysmal due to lack of access to early diagnosis and treatment.
President Banda is working to reverse this problem by signing an agreement with TNIB and GBOIG to open an outpatient clinic for the treatment of cancer, HIV/AIDS, and infectious diseases at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital within the coming months. At the clinic TNIB and GBOIG will deliver both conventional and alternative therapies; including safer, more effective cancer therapies, new-targeted drug therapies, and minimally invasive surgical alternatives.
The new facility for outpatient cancer care, education, and research will allow TNIB and GBOIG to:
• Provide first-rate cancer care in Malawi, a country of about 16 million citizens suffering from one of the highest cancer rates in the world, in order to improve survival rates for most common cancers under the available therapies from 10 percent to 90 percent, saving an estimated 5,000 lives each year.
• Study the interaction between infections and cancer by promoting cutting-edge research aimed at pathophysiology, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of infection-related cancers in Africa.
• Improve the quality of medical education in oncology and increase the number of cancer specialists in Malawi.
The Government of Malawi will make space available in the Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital where TNIB and GBOIG will retrofit the facility and start the operation of an outpatient oncology and infectious disease clinic. This first phase will begin in November of 2012 with the anticipation of the clinic being operational by March of 2013. This clinic will include a CT Scan, an X-Ray Room, a 10 chair infusion chemo-therapy and immune rehabilitating therapy clinic, a sterile room, all related medical supplies, an electronic medical record system, and other medical services. In an effort to provide treatment immediately, the companies will initiate the treatment of 10,000 women and children a day for cancer, HIV/AIDS, and infectious diseases using IRT-103 LDN, and then expand to 250,000-500,000 patients over time. The next phase is focused on adding the necessary Radiation Oncology treatments. The radiation department will be managed by an experienced radiation oncology team and will provide the most advanced technology they can offer to provide the highest chance for healing and recovery; the aim is to have Phase II within 12 months.
Dr. Gloria Herndon, President & Managing Member of GBOIG stated, “Though cultural change is achieved very slowly, we strongly believe that IRT-103 (LDN) can serve to literally save millions of lives within a relatively short time. We believe this is an important step forward as there is an urgent need in Malawi for readily available, safe and effective treatments that can hopefully increase the life span and improve the quality of life for millions of cancer and HIV/AIDS infected patients.”
“Having a healthy population is essential for the fabric and stability of the nation. It is imperative to provide care to the people of Malawi in need of care,” said President Banda. “It’s also the right thing to do. There can be no greater mandate in cancer treatment and research than to wage the fight by doing the right thing.”
To learn more about the company, visit www.tnibiotech.com
