Shan Foods, a leading name in the food industry, have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Indus Hospital & Health Network (IHHN), a not-for-profit healthcare Network. Founded in 2007, IHHN has now evolved into Pakistan’s private sector’s largest free-of-cost healthcare Network with 13 hospitals, 4 regional blood centers, 4 physical rehabilitation centers, 26 primary care facilities and community-based outreach programs. Through this MoU, Shan Foods will sponsor 142 chemotherapy sessions for pediatric cancer patients every three months for over a year.
Cancer is one of the most neglected non-communicable diseases in Pakistan, with pediatric cancer particularly disregarded. Even though more than 8,000 children in Pakistan are diagnosed with cancer every year, the limited number of pediatric oncology centers means that not more than 50% are properly diagnosed and treated. The cost-prohibitive treatment, coupled with lack of awareness in families means that a staggering 45% of children with cancer never reach the hospital. Furthermore, the unavailability of dedicated pediatric oncology centers and a specialized workforce trained to manage pediatric cancer leads to a substandard level of care and poor cancer survival in children. These challenges amalgamate into a dismal pediatric cancer survival rate in Pakistan; where around the world 85% of children with cancer go on to survive, in Pakistan only 20-30 out of every 100 children with cancer can hope for survival. IHHN is a ray of hope for pediatric cancer patients and their families in Pakistan, providing free-of-cost, high quality treatment at a state of the art pediatric cancer unit, which is the largest in Pakistan with 85 beds. To date, more than 10,600 children have been treated here for cancer, with more than 1,500 children being added to this pool from across Pakistan and even across borders. Shan Foods has joined IHHN in this noble cause, and will cover the cost of life saving Chemotherapy for children undergoing cancer treatment.
Maria Rashdi, Head of Corporate Communications and PR Shan Foods, said, “Shan Foods firmly believes that affordable and easily accessible, quality healthcare is a basic right of every citizen. We appreciate the services of IHHN to ensure this basic right for people. Through this partnership, we aim to contribute towards the health and wellbeing of our children who are the future of our society.”
Appreciating Shan Foods’ contribution, Dr. Abdul Bari Khan, CEO Indus Hospital & Health Network, said, “IHHN is committed to providing free-of-cost healthcare to deserving patients all over Pakistan. We greatly value Shan Food’s participation in our cause to cure thousands of children suffering from the burdensome disease of cancer.”
