KUWAIT: Kuwait is preparing a national registry for Leukemia and hereditary bleeding disorders expected to be completed within the next year, Director of NBK Children Hospital Ali Mulla said Thursday.  The remarks came in a speech delivered during the opening of Kuwait’s first Hematology Conference.

Mulla, who is also chairman of the conference’s scientific committee, said there are currently around 300 cases of leukemia and bleeding disorders registered in various hospitals across the country.

Causes of these diseases are hereditary in some cases, said Mulla, so doctors recommend couples to get premarital tests to identify the potential of giving birth to children with these conditions and comply with the test results to avoid hereditary blood disorders. People should also eat health food, maintain good sleep hygiene and exercise regularly.

Mulla said there are around 120 cases of children with blood cancer every year in Kuwait, which is in line with increase in cases worldwide. Despite a surge in cases, the numbers are considered much lower than those recorded worldwide when examining the number of cases in relation to Kuwait’s population.

Director of Mubarak Al-Kabeer Medical Zone Dr Waleed Al-Busairi delivered a speech on behalf of Health Minister Ahmad Al-Awadhi where he commended Kuwaiti doctors for making effective contributions in international scientific research in the field of hematology and producing positive results that appeared in specialized international scientific journals. Busairi said the world is interested in supporting research on the best remedies and mitigation strategies. Kuwait’s health ministry is no different, as it’s constantly on the lookout for programs adopted by the World Health Organization (WHO) related to blood disorders.

The ministry has adopted initiatives in line with these programs, said Busairi, including coordination with local and international academic entities to study the requirements for the creation of critical specialties to qualify local doctors in the ministry.

Chairwoman of the conference Hematologist Hadeel Saleh said the conference brings together an elite group of specialists to present the latest in research and scientific development in blood disorders in children and adults. She said that the hematology specialty is multi-faceted and includes many subspecialties, such as cancer and benign diseases both hereditary and acquired. Due to how sensitive the specialty is, the conference gathered specialists from the most prestigious international centers to learn about the latest in scientific studies in this field and discuss ideas based on scientific evidence. —KUNA