The National Breast and Bowel Cancer Screening Program – Screen For Life- lead by The Primary Health Care Corporation (PHCC) is directing an awareness campaign across Qatar’s major malls throughout March in line with its Bowel Cancer Screening Awareness Campaign entitled “Ask Me About Bowel Cancer Screening” that has been launched last week
PHCC has installed activation booths across three of the country’s most popular destinations as part of its goal to spread awareness to a wider audience and significantly enhance knowledge about bowel cancer screening among the Qatari population.
Activation booths will be located at Ezdan Mall, Landmark Mall and Villaggio Mall, during the month-long campaign which aims to engage with all segments of Qatari society. A specialized team from the Breast and Bowel Cancer Screening Program will be on hand to interact with shoppers and educate them about bowel cancer screening and the program in general.
The primary focus of the campaign will be to target men and women of Qatar aged 50-74, the most-at-risk age group, to advise them on the benefits of screening and urge them to make an appointment.
In addition, the highly trained team from PHCC will seek to connect with younger shoppers who can influence their parents and help spread awareness about the ‘Screen For Life’ program.
With bowel cancer among the top two malignant cancers in Qatar, early detection through screening can help increase survival rates by as much as 90%.
“One of the most important aspects of our work is reaching as wide an audience as possible and raising awareness of bowel cancer screening,” Dr. Shaikha Abu Shaikha, Cancer Program Manager, PHCC, said. “By placing the activation booths across Qatar’s leading malls we will ensure that our message and increased knowledge of the advantages of bowel screening is being passed on to a greater number of people specially that bowel cancer is the second top malignant primary sites in Qatar highest .”
The PHCC team will be present at the booths to offer guidance and advice on the bowel cancer screening process . A key feature of the activation is on-site registration so shoppers can discuss the program before they sign up for a screening appointment.
Visitors can also register by calling the PHCC’s Cancer Screening Call Center 8001112.
“Thousands of people have already benefited for our ‘Screen For Life’ program and we expect to reach a significant number of people with our presence in malls throughout this month-long campaign,” Dr. Shaikha Abu Shaikha added.
“Our activities during Bowel Cancer Awareness Month would not have been possible without the support of the malls. This partnership shows that we are committed to improving the health of Qatar’s population.”
