Martinique ready to supply Guyana with radioactive drugs to fight cancers

Last Updated on Sunday, 7 June 2026, 18:16 by Denis Chabrol

Martinique, a French overseas department in the Caribbean, is ready to provide Guyana with radioactive nuclear drugs to treat certain cancers, Health Minister Dr Frank Anthony said Sunday.

He told a ceremony co-sponsored by The Lotus Cancer Initiative Inc and the Ministry of Health to celebrate several cancer survivors that an oncology centre in Martinique, which manufactures radiopharmaceuticals, is ready to supply Guyana. “The discussions that we had a couple months ago- they are actually willing to send some of these things to the doctors here so that they can use it on patients here so isotopes that are especially geared to reduce certain types of cancers,” he said.

Two prostate cancer survivors and several breast and cervical cancer survivors related their experiences from the time of diagnosis to treatment and care. Ms Alyson Chester and Desiree Edghill especially highlighted the roles that the Guyana government played in assisting them. Ms Chester, who lives in St Lucia, highlighted the invaluable free treatment and laboratory tests that are being provided by Guyana. “The treatment is real good. In St. Lucia, I would have had to pay for every blood test that I had to do. Everything that you have to do concerning your treatment, you had to pay,” she said. She also credited the Georgetown Public Hospital’s (GPHC) Oncology Department with providing a high quality of care. You are so lucky with that oncology department there because they look after you and the nurses there, everybody, they’re so good and kind to you so even though you’re going through that journey; You don’t feel alone because there’s always people there and they’re very encouraging,” she said.

One of the prostate cancer survivors, Aubrey Knight, who retraced his journey from diagnosis to survival, appealed to men over 40 years old to take a Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) test. He assured men that doctors no longer have to  insert their fingers into men’s anus to examine their prostate, but the test is now being done by taking a blood sample.  “It’s not the finger anymore, you know so, don’t be afraid. I was afraid of the finger too, right…It had you funny when the doctor got to insert his finger into you…but it’s just a blood test now and you will know your PSA, what it says,” Mr Knight said.

Dr Anthony said called on all men to stop being stubborn and take the PSA test instead of waiting for the last moment, though he was quick to point out that “we are seeing more and more men through the programs that we are running at least coming to get their PSAs.”

“That’s something we need to encourage because men, one of the big problems that we’ve got, they don’t come to clinic and they only come when you’re really sick with something or the other and you can’t move and somebody’s going to drag you and bring you to the clinic or the hospital. That has been the problem so there’s a stubbornness with men that we have to overcome,” he said. 

The Health Minister restated that Guyana was increasing the number of mammography centres countrywide to test for breast cancer, and forging ahead aggressively with increasing the coverage with Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccines to about 69 percent. He said Guyana was aiming for 100 percent coverage to eventually eliminate cervical cancer.

He said Guyana’s public health system was also conducting biopsies free of cost, eliminating the need for people to pay as much as US$100.

Dr Anthony also said Guyana was developing external relations with the Texas, United States-based UT MD Anderson, whose mission is to eliminate cancer through patient care, research and prevention, the Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO), National Cancer Institute of India and a paediatric cancer centre in Colombia. “We have to continue to work as we build and grow our system and get the right expertise,” he said.

Chief Executive Officer of Lotus Cancer Initiative Inc; Dr Shivani Samlall said her organisation’s mission is to improve cancer outcomes through education, prevention, early detection, advocacy, and support.  She said the organisation aims to support the work of the Ministry of Health. “We aim to raise awareness, promote screening, empower communities with knowledge, and provide assistance to those navigating cancer care,” said Dr Samlall, an obstetrician-gynecologist.

An adjunct professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Guyana; Dr Samlall also said Lotus Cancer Initiative Inc. is a community, a community of survivors, of families, of healthcare professionals, volunteers, supporters, who are all united with one vision. She envisages a “future where fewer people suffer from preventable cancers and where every person facing cancer receives the care, dignity, and support they deserve.”