Prostate Cancer Survivors Share Experiences of Painless Surgery at Reddington Hospital
Mary Nnah
No fewer than 50 patients diagnosed with prostate cancer were successfully operated on at Reddington Hospital, Victoria Island, Lagos in the last 12 months.
Some of the survivors gave accounts of how they were saved from premature death after undergoing laparoscopic surgery, a non-invasive pinhole surgery.
At a media parley in Lagos, to mark the milestone attained in the last 12 months by the Reddington Hospital in conjunction with Prof. Kingsley Ekwueme, a United Kingdom-based Consultant Urological, Laparoscopic, and Robotic Surgeon, the survivors narrated how using the latest technology in prostate cancer care at Reddington Hospital assured a 100 per cent cure for their ailment with minimal loss of blood or any other side effect.
Mr. Ben Alozie, a veteran journalist, also a survivor, who had his laparoscopic surgery 10 months ago, said the previous eight years had been traumatic for him because he had had a near-fatal road accident with broken legs, survived Covid-19 before he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
“But today I am a happy man. I am free from cancer. No more urinary incontinence and my libido is back fully”, said Alozie while urging men not to be negligent but go for a regular test to check their Prostate health.
Mr. Emeka Ezeani went for an annual vacation in the United States and used the opportunity to run a comprehensive health check. It was one of the tests that returned positive for prostate cancer.
“The result was like a death sentence. I was devastated. My sister in New York said I should come over to do another test for a second opinion. It was confirmed but I was assured there is hope as it has not progressed much,” Ezeani said.
He was about to start radiotherapy in the hospital when he read a report about Ekwueme in the WhatsApp group of their church, St. Mulumba Catholic Church.
He made contact with Ekwueme who asked him to take the next available flight to Lagos.
“I came back January 14, 2023, did the MRI Scan, and was booked for the surgery at Reddington Hospital. The rest is history. I am free of prostate cancer. No pain, no loss of blood during the surgery, and I ate food the same day,” Ezeani said while narrating his experience. He thanked the management of Reddington Hospital for providing a conducive medical environment for the successful surgery.
In a presentation titled, “Can We Conquer Prostate Cancer?”, Ekwueme said prostate cancer had become a public health burden globally with statistics showing high prevalence in Europe and North America. He said that although data in Nigeria was very poor, available information paints a gloomy picture.
Ekwueme said people should not wait to have symptoms before they go for prostate cancer screening noting that at that stage it is terrible news because it is already advanced. He said the success rate of laparoscopic surgery was 100 per cent, adding that his partnership with Reddington Hospital would provide succor for Nigerian men and others from the West Coast including Ghana who come for the surgery.
Chief Operating Officer of Reddington Hospital, Mr. Matthew Emmanuel said the hospital had been at the forefront of revising medical tourism since its inception through excellence in healthcare and by partnering with Nigerian health professionals in the Diaspora to come back to Nigeria to deliver the same quality services in the healthcare value chain.
