The Head of the Department of Surgery, University of Ghana Medical School (UGMS), Professor Mathew Kwame Yamoah Kyei, has underscored the need to include checking for kidney disorders in antenatal care policies at healthcare facilities.
Such a move, he said, would not only help in the early detection of kidney cancer among pregnant women in the country, but also reduce the rate of kidney cancer-related deaths.
Prof. Kyei said this when he delivered a lecture at the University of Ghana, Legon, on Thursday, on the topic: “Naked but not ashamed: Revealing for good outcomes in the management of genito-urinary disorders.”
The lecture was based on findings of research studies conducted by Prof. Kyei over the years as well as his experience as a urologist.
“We encourage that as a policy, antenatal scan should at least go a step further to look at kidney. If we do that, then we are likely to get kidney cancers in an early stage, which are essentially curable. Because the smaller the cancer, the more likely that it could be cured,” Prof. Kyei said.
Furthermore, he advised patients with reproductive and urinary system disorders, which are also described as genitourinary disorders to undergo genitourinary surgeries when diagnosed with such disorders, to help in the treatment of their health conditions.
According to Prof. Kyei, most patients with reproductive and urinary system disorders found it difficult to visit urologists or genitourinary surgeons to expose the affected parts of their bodies to them, due to their cultural and religious upbringing.
This, Prof. Kyei said often worsen the health condition of such patients as they might be unable to receive early treatment, leading to various health complications.
He also added that the pain associated with urology procedures were minimal, allaying the fears of patients who undergo such procedures not to panic.
“Currently, a course of paracetamol for a day or so is all that is needed, and many clients realised they did not even need it,” Prof Kyei added.
Moreover, he noted that the use of Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) and digital rectal examination were good ways of screening for prostate cancer to enable early detection and treatment.
According to Prof. Kyei, individuals with a PSA range between four and 10 were 90 per cent safe from getting prostate cancer, and therefore urged individuals to visit a genitourinary specialist for regular screening.
“I will advise that you do the PSA test every two years after 50 years, and based on the figures, you will be able to deal with it. If you do it early, you don’t need to rush looking for the difficulty in solving the problem,” Prof. Kyei said.
In addition, he said that surgery for prostate cancer, also known as radical prostatectomy, was very effective in its cure among men, despite it being challenging.
In her closing remarks, the Vice-Chancellor of the UG, Prof. Nana Aba Appiah Amfo, urged the individuals to regularly visit health facilities to check their reproductive and urinary system to help in the early detection of disorders.
The lecture was attended by members of academia, traditional leaders, the clergy, students of UG, old students of UGMS, and the family of Prof. Kyei, who presented him with citations.
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