Under the theme ” Optimization of the 1st metastatic line“, The Moroccan Association of Medical Oncology of the Liberal Sector (OMM), organized its 1st congress with the participation of experts of national and international renown.
The first WMO Congress, held from November 19 to 20 in Marrakech, was a success according to the various renowned experts who took part in the event. Among the participants, Prof. Martine Piccart, pioneer in the fight against breast cancer at the Jules Bordet Institute in Brussels, Prof. Marc Spielmann, also oncologist from the French Breast Institute in Paris.
On the Moroccan side, several internationally known experts took part in the event, in particular Prof. El Attar Hicham, specialist in Biology at the Annasr Pathology Center in El Jadida, or Prof. Mohamed Ouacchou, head of the oncology department. at the Mohammed V military hospital in Rabat.
” The first congress was a success. There was a great national presence, a lot of participants, a very interactive congress, rich in information, in national and international exchanges with as result, the development of future national projects, in particular in the collection of database and patient data. Moroccan“Said to MoroccoLatestNews, Dr Kawtar El Hassani, Medical Oncologist-Oncologist in Rabat and Vice-President of the Moroccan Association of Medical Oncology.
This Data Base development project will collect biological and genetic data from Moroccan patients in order to be able to study them with the participation of the Moroccan professor of biology, Dr. El Attar.
Effective care accessible to all
In 2019 in Morocco, more than 48,000 cases of cancer were diagnosed with a higher rate in women than in men. Faced with these alarming figures, the question of the effectiveness of the treatment protocol in Morocco resurfaces.
According to Dr. El Hassani, Morocco has made a giant leap in the field of oncology, and this, for ten years.
” Morocco has made a giant leap in the last ten years in the field of oncology, with the emergence of several learned societies in oncology and the development of a national ‘online guide’. You should know that these learned societies make ‘online guides’ and national recommendations in order to optimize the care of Moroccan patients. And this of course thanks to continuous training and the involvement of Moroccan oncologists“, Explains the expert.
Today, the Kingdom has very good oncologists and oncologists who are very active and known at national and international level, specifies our interlocutor, recalling once again the advances made in the care of cancer patients, also thanks to the support from the Lalla Salma Foundation.
” We are trying to do our best so that the latest molecules, the latest techniques are available in Morocco. Today, I am proud to say that the Kingdom has the latest techniques and molecules for the treatment of cancer in general for the benefit of the Moroccan patient.“, Affirmed Dr. El Hassani.
Asked if the high cost of cancer treatment, which sometimes limits the care of certain patients in financial difficulty, the vice-president of the Moroccan Association of Medical Oncology ensures that most patients are properly cared for thanks to AMO or RAMED.
” We know that the cost of cancer care is too high. Fortunately, there is a part of the population that is insured. It is a disease which is heavy and serious. So the main Moroccan insurances, in particular the AMO, ensure the care of Moroccan patients, and moreover we wish to congratulate them and thank them for their collaboration.“Said Dr El Hassani.
And to add in this sense: ” Even the most expensive protocols are covered and reimbursed by these insurances, because we work with them, by establishing guidelines and choosing which molecules and which technique deserve the patient’s benefit. Obviously there are very expensive and ineffective treatments. We prefer not to take charge of them and not to reimburse them. But the important molecules that change the prognosis and save lives, we put the pressure and we collaborate with the insurance companies to ensure that they are taken care of.“.
Now the problem arises for patients who do not have health insurance (AMO), or who do not have RAMED, raises the expert. These patients are taken care of in CHUs and hospitals, she said.
” Thanks to RAMED, even poor patients have access to innovative and expensive molecules. Obviously, there are still a few molecules that are not supported. But there are efforts made in Morocco in this direction, in particular the launch by King Mohammed VI of the site of the generalization of medical coverage for all. We know very well that oncology and Moroccan cancer patients will benefit from this compulsory health insurance. And in the future, everyone will be treated the same and access to care will be equitable for all“, Concluded the oncologist.
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