12 persons test positive to HIV at medical outreach

At least 12 persons tested positive to HIV and cervical cancer at an Inner Wheel Club medical screening held in Lagos on Friday.

Four of them tested positive to HIV while the eight others tested positive to cervical cancer.

Chairman of the screening programme, Mrs Sunbo Osunbayo, said the medical outreach was organised to help the less-privileged to establish their health conditions and to seek remedy.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the District 912 of the Inner Wheel Club that conducted the screening comprised Lagos State and some parts of Ogun State.

NAN reports that the free medical outreach featured screening for eye infections, breast cancer for women, prostate cancer for men, sugar level, Hepatitis B, HIV, malaria, family planning and provided free reading glasses.

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Osunbayo tasked participants to reduce stressful lifestyles, do away with eating things that could worsen their health conditions and be of assistance to one another to check depression.

“Shouting, quarrelling, eating red meat, living in unhygienic environment and indulgence in consumption of excess alcohol trigger bad health conditions that can result in premature death,’’ she cautioned.

She said that alcoholic drinks and cigarettes could subject consumers to Hepatitis B, cancer, kidney and liver problems and could lead to terminal illnesses.

Osunbayo expressed regret at prevalence of diseases in the society and advised people to discard lifestyles that could subject them to illnesses.

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In her address at the event, leader of the screening team, Dr Adebisi Adenuga-Ojoniyi, said that early detection was fundamental to good treatment and remedy.

Adenuga-Ojoniyi, whose professional counselling emboldened attendees to submit themselves for HIV screening, said it was better to be mocked at than to be cried over.

“If those who tested positive for some diseases have not come out for screening, they may be killed by the diseases earlier than expected.

“As their statuses have been made known to them, treatment and management will begin to help them to live normal lives,’’ she said.

In her address, at the event, Inner Wheel District 912 Chairman, Mrs Adefunke Shinaba, said that the day was set aside to reach out and impact on lives in different ways through the programme.

Solacebase reports that Inner Wheel Club is an international women service-oriented organisation, founded by Mrs Oliver Golding, spouse of a Rotarian in Manchester, United Kingdom in 1924.

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“We have presence in104 countries and also have not less than 108,000 members across the globe.

“District 912 Nigeria is one of the six districts in Nigeria and consists of 24-clubs in Lagos State and parts of Ogun Stated.

“It is a non-profit, non-political organisation of women of integrity whose purpose is to serve humanity.

“Health they say is wealth. Mindful of this, we have come here with the support of the local government chairman, Kehinde Almaroof, who opened the doors of this facility for us and provided health officials to handle the screening to make a great impact on all that are gathered here today,’’ she said.

The theme of the screening is: “Mental Health Alertness.’’ (NAN)