Bangladesh Cancer Clinics to Fight Cervical Cancer with World Bank Tender

Eckert & Ziegler Strahlen- und Medizintechnik (Berlin, Germany) has won a tender in Bangladesh through its subsidiary Eckert & Ziegler Bebig (Berlin, Germany) to equip Bangladeshi cancer clinics with advanced cancer radiotherapy technology.

The devices, from the MultiSource series, worth EUR 3.1 million, will provide clinics with a full range of applications for effectively treating gynecologic tumors, with a focus on healing cervical cancer, across the whole of East Bengal. Bangladesh has one of the world’s highest mortality rates from this type of cancerous tumor. Currently, there remain few hospitals where women with cancer can be effectively treated.

“We are particularly proud of this order,” said Abel Luzuriaga, member of the executive board and responsible for the medical device division at Eckert & Ziegler. “We have provided the first clinics in Bangladesh with equipment several years ago and have now received a subsequent order for deliveries on a large scale. Even if the order volume doesn’t seem all that large at first, the devices will make a significant difference to the lives of tens of thousands of women—and their children. Cervical cancer often occurs at a relatively young age and in many cases affects mothers.”

The MultiSource range of cancer irradiation equipment with integrated planning software became the most preferred equipment. It was chosen because of its long use of miniaturized cobalt-60 technology, which is unique in the market. They offer a high level of flexibility and versatility and a cost-effective solution for treating cancer. The devices operate at about one- sixth of the cost of traditional systems.

“We are pleased to see that emerging countries in Asia, Africa, and South America are increasingly gaining access to the latest medical infrastructure that has long been available in other parts of the world. Of course, these countries have to think twice before they invest. Our range of MultiSource devices is exactly what decision-makers are looking for,” Mr. Luzuriaga added, “which is clearly the reason they have ordered more.”

Eckert & Ziegler, in the last few years, has already equipped more than 250 cancer clinics with these systems, and even nationwide in some countries. The equipment is scheduled for delivery to Bangladeshi government radiation clinics between December 2013 and March 2014.

The order is being funded by a consortium that includes the World Bank, the World Health Organization (Geneva, Switzerland), the European Union (EU) and the KfW Development Bank as part of the Health, Population & Nutrition Sector Development Program. The goal of the five-year program is to guarantee basic health care for the treatment of new cancer cases, which are on the rise in Bangladesh.

The Eckert & Ziegler Group is one of the world’s largest providers of isotope components for radiation therapy and nuclear medicine. In addition to irradiation equipment for gynecologic tumors, Eckert & Ziegler manufactures products for the treatment of prostate cancer and ocular tumors.

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