The Department of Health (DOH) inaugurated Friday two newly-acquired modern equipment worth PHP230 million at the cancer center of the government-run Zamboanga City Medical Center (ZCMC).

DOH Assistant Secretary, Dr. Romeo Ong led the inauguration of the Linear Accelerator and Brachytherapy equipment worth PHP197 million and PHP33 million, respectively.

A linear accelerator (LINAC) is a machine that is commonly used to deliver external beam radiation treatments to cancer patients.

The LINAC can target and destroy cancerous cells in a precise area of a patient’s body with minimal exposure to the surrounding healthy tissue.

The Brachytherapy machine is used for radiation treatment that is given directly into the body of a patient. It is placed as close to the cancer as possible and the radiation is given using tiny devices such as wires, seeds, or rods filled with radioactive materials.

Dr. Jeng Misuari Alihuddin, a gynecologic oncologist at the cancer center, said that the Brachytherapy machine is used to treat cervical, endometrial, and prostate cancer.

Dr. Afdal Kunting, ZCMC chief of hospital, said the cancer center will not only serve patients from the Zamboanga Peninsula but to include those from the nearby provinces of Basilan, Sulu, and Tawi-Tawi, which are under the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Kunting said that the cancer center will help lessen the expenses of cancer patients, who previously need to go to Manila, Cebu, or Davao for treatment. (PNA)