PNG students complete month-long training in China

A MONTH-long cancer prevention and treatment training for 20 Papua New Guinea students in China has given them a head start to their involvement in the new Cancer Centre at the Port Moresby General Hospital (PMGH), their team leader says.
“The training will be of a great benefit in changing the current practice of cancer management of our patients and to implement what we have learnt when we open our new centre,” oncology physician and team leader Dr Aine Anota said.
Anota said 14 of the trainees were from the Port Moresby General Hospital and six from the School of Medicine and Health Sciences, the University of Papua New Guinea Taurama campus.
“The 20 participants comprised six doctors, five nurses and two medical physicists, one pharmacist, three administration support staff and three imaging staff,” Anota said.
Speaking after the training, Anota said the trainees had learnt much from the lectures, visitations to respective departments, cancer prevention and screening, radiology methods used in diagnosing cancers, pathological diagnosis of cancer tumors to treatment of cancer ranging from traditional surgical methods to laparoscopic techniques, radiation therapy and machines used in the treatment, immunotherapy, use of genetic engineering, target therapy and stem cell therapy used in the management of cancers.
The training from Nov 6-30 was hosted by Chongqing University Cancer Hospital.
Hospital president Wu Yongzhong, who is also a training manager, said the training for PNG students went well.
“From director Zhang Yunyun’s report on the implementation of this training, as well as speeches by training expert and trainee representatives, we can say that we have successfully completed all the training tasks through our joint efforts,” Wu said.
He presented certificates to the students.
Anota thanked the hospital board and management for the training at Chongqing city and the PNG and China governments through the Department of Health and Chongqing Municipal Health Commission which, for the past 21 years, had sent 12 medical teams to PMGH.