By Gibron Rahim
GUYANA is fortunate to have many young people who are willing to contribute toward the development of our country and the wellbeing of its citizens. These young people, through their efforts, give us hope for the future. One of these young people is Dr. Salma Ferouz who will soon represent the Guyana Cancer Foundation and Guyana at the Sixth World Congress on Human Genetics and Genetic Diseases.

The conference will be held on April 8 and 9 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Participants from all over the world have been invited to attend the event which will be composed of keynote presentations, oral talks, poster presentations and exhibitions. The theme for this year’s Congress is “Know the current generation to save the future generation”. The event aims to provide a global platform for showcasing research in the field of human genetics and genetic diseases.

One of the aims is to have recent trending research and its role in cancer treatment be discussed through the conference. Abu Dhabi is home to Eastern Biotech and this is one of the reasons it was selected to host the conference. The company is the first in the Middle East to offer comprehensive genetic testing services.

Dr. Ferouz attended Texila American University in Guyana. “I did my first two years here then I went to Chicago to do my clinical rotations,” she explained to the Pepperpot Magazine. Before those four years of study, she had pursued her premedical studies at Texila. She related that she is currently doing volunteer work while awaiting her residency placement in the United States. Dr. Ferouz is being sponsored by her proud parents Shafeek and Saudia Ferouz of Twins Manufacturing Chemists to attend the conference.

Her focus at the conference will be the correlation between cancer and genetics, environmental factors that cause mutations in genes and how those factor into causing cancer, according to Dr. Ferouz. “Hopefully I will be able to learn and bring back new ideas and new causes to Guyana and educate everyone here on what I learn,” she said. She noted that, as its name suggests, the conference will focus on various genetic diseases. However, as a delegate representing the Guyana Cancer Foundation (GCF), she said her primary interest will be on cancer and genetics and the way environmental factors affect genetics and the development of cancer.

As a delegate, Dr. Ferouz pointed out that she has no presentation or research to present. Rather, her focus will be on representing the GCF to the best of her ability and learning as much as she can. She noted that it was Ms. Bibi Hassan, President of the Guyana Cancer Foundation, to whom the invitation to the conference was extended. “She picks someone from her team who she thinks is going to be able to represent her and Guyana as a whole at the conference,” Dr. Ferouz related. “Thankfully, I have some time off now so I’ll be able to go up and represent.”

Dr. Ferouz has previously volunteered with the GCF. Those experiences played a role in her willingness to represent the organisation at the upcoming conference. She related that she on has gone on medical outreaches to locations such as Linden, Garden of Eden and Pomeroon. “The mission of the Guyana Cancer Foundation is to try and educate and spread awareness to patients in populations where they’re medically underinsured and medically underserved,” Dr. Ferouz explained. “As the Guyana Cancer Foundation, we try to do screening for cancers.”

The GCF performs Pap smears (to screen for cervical cancer) and clinical breast examinations. If abnormal findings are made, the individuals are referred to undergo mammograms or ultrasounds. “For men, we’re also offering PSA screening which is the prostate-specific antigen,” Dr. Ferouz said. “That’s what we look for with a person who has prostate cancer.” Persons are referred to Woodlands Hospital where they are able to check their levels of the prostate-specific antigen to detect if they have prostate cancer.

It is significant for the GCF to be part of the Sixth World Congress on Human Genetics and Genetic Diseases. Dr. Ferouz noted that the GCF is still a new organisation, having been founded in 2016. “We’re still on a very small scale so I think for us to make a name for ourselves we have to go out and represent wherever we get the opportunity to do so,” she said. These conferences, she added, give the GCF an opportunity to network with persons who may be able to help the organisation in terms of donations or coming to Guyana to help out through the GCF. Dr. Ferouz is hopeful that the networking opportunities at the conference will make future help in the cancer fight in Guyana possible.

Hassan told the Pepperpot Magazine that the GCF tries to reach out to low income and medically underserved communities. She noted the difficulty residents in these communities encounter in accessing proper medical facilities. In the case of cancer screening, it is very expensive for these residents to travel to access testing. “I can only cover, because of funding, a certain amount [of people] because of the budget,” Hassan related. “If I get more funding I can actually pay their passage for them to come.” She pointed out that getting to the areas to conduct screenings is costly as well.

Dr. Ferouz’s work with the Guyana Cancer Foundation has influenced her choice of medical speciality. “I’m going to do internal medicine and after that, I can subspecialise,” she said. She related, “I was never really sure what I wanted to subspecialise in but being in Guyana, doing these outreaches, I see the need for an oncologist.” She noted as well that cancer education in Guyana could be stronger. “Seeing all of this, I think that I’m going to set my mind to maybe study oncology, come back and help strengthen the Cancer Foundation in Guyana,” stated Dr. Ferouz.

Dr. Ferouz noted that, in Chicago where she did her rotations, there are protocols in place for screening for cancers. As an example, she noted that they start screening for cervical cancer from ages 21 to 65. “Guyana has no such protocol and it’s hard because you don’t know who’s getting these cancers and these screenings are necessary [as] they help save so many lives,” she remarked. “I hope when I get my education and further my studies I’ll be able to come back and help out Guyana and be able to put some protocols in place like this so that we could help make Guyana better and help prolong the lives of our citizens.”