The Guyana Telephone and Telegraph Company (GTT) on Friday officially launched its annual “Pinktober” cancer awareness campaign. The company’s “Pinktober” events are hosted every October, which is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and aims to educate Guyanese on cancer screening, treatment, to raise funds to contribute to the facilitation of and access to screenings, treatment and psychosocial support. This year, the company is not only focused on breast cancer awareness, as was the case in previous years, and it will place focus on all other cancers.
According to GTT’s “Pinktober” 2019 ambassador Ambika Ramraj, the company remains committed to ensuring that the Guyanese populace has knowledge and access to information on all types of cancers so as to reduce the number of lives lost to the disease.
Throughout the month of October, a number of activities are planned, including a Cancer Care Symposium, the ‘Strike for the Fight,’ a “Pinktober” football match and the 5k/10k Walk & Run which has been the most supported event over the past years in which “Pinktober” has been hosted.
Minister of Public Health Volda Lawrence, who addressed the launch, which was held at MovieTowne Guyana, commended the company on the ongoing initiative. The minister stated that it is only through campaigns like “Pinktober” that myths about the disease can be dispelled. Lawrence implored the attendees to wake up and become aware as anyone is susceptible to being affected by the disease. The minister went on to say that her ministry has initiated active campaigns to address cancer. “We have acquired a mammogram machine… and very soon we will be acquiring another. For those of you who are not aware this machine is at the Georgetown Public Hospital… I encourage you to access these services and keep a check on these cancers” Lawrence said.
According to the health minister, the ministry has invested in and implemented a number of services to do checks for cervical cancer along with tests for the human papillomavirus. “My appeal to you is to take your health under your control, share the information you have with your friends and family and let’s help to manage the spread of cancer,” Lawrence stated.
During the launch, GTT also highlighted a number of organisations that it would have partnered with, including the Giving Hope Foundation, the Linden Cancer Society, Women on the Move and the Guyana Responsible Parenthood Association (GRPA). GRPA was also presented with a grant of $1.14M.
CEO of GTT Justin Nedd, in his address at the launch, stated that the event is a significant one that impacts a lot of Guyanese as most persons would have been touched by cancer, whether they would have lost family members, friends or were even themselves diagnosed with the disease. “When we go out to walk, I want each and every one of us to think about the impact that we are making. I want us to think about how we can spread the awareness and how we can donate to making a difference,” Nedd said while adding that the company is aiming to have and is expecting over 10,000 participants in this year’s walk. The CEO added that it would be easy to sit on the sidelines and leave it to the public health ministry and other private sector stakeholders to do the work but added that by participating they would make a bigger difference.
The launch also saw the debut of the official jingle for the campaign.
