Philips Foundation helps target prostate cancer in Colombia

Philips Foundation has provided funds and equipment to support La Liga Contra el Cáncer in a campaign aimed at raising awareness for prostate cancer. A total of 2477 men were directly impacted.​

Between June 2018 and January 2019, more than thirty workshops were held, which aimed to educate communities on the signs and symptoms of prostate cancer and screen men for the disease. If a man presents signs of prostate cancer, La Liga then works with them to obtain an appointment with a urologist who can complete diagnosis with a donated Philips ultrasound guided biopsy. ​

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Through this program, La Liga and The Philips Foundation hope to increase the rate of early cancer diagnosis using Philips ultrasound technology, improving the prognosis and quality of life for Colombians living with prostate cancer.

"The Philips Foundation has enabled specialist equipment and training via our Philips Ultrasound team who also helped design the educational messaging" said Margot Cooijmans Director of the Philips Foundation. "Helping target non-communicable diseases in this way is a key part of our approach."

Prostate cancer increasingly common

Prostate cancer in Colombia has continued to increase over the years and has become one of the most common ailments in men on a global scale. Various sources estimate that there are around 6500 to 8000 new prostate cancer cases every year. Prostate cancer is now the leading cause of cancer incidence and the second leading cause of cancer mortality in the male population.

The average age at which this disease occurs ranges from 40 to 46 per 100,000 men, with an increasing incidence rate in men over 60 years of age and with a cumula​​tive risk of 4.3% having prostate cancer before age 75. The emergence of this disease shows an increasing trend, with 2,482 deaths registered in 2014.

​The Anti-Cancer League is a non-profit institution that has a track record and experience of more than 45 years on developing and specializing an integral model to promote, prevent and early detect cancer in the Colombian population. Their work had positively impacted the quality of life of thousands of persons, based on the values of quality, continuous improvement and patient safety. They have a strong convening power around the medical, governmental, media and among public opinion. 

Asdrubal Mata, Philips General Manager of North Latam, who was deeply involved, said: ​