Abstract
Background: Large numbers of Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMN), also called the Rohingya community, in Bangladesh face chronic life-threatening illnesses. Symptoms concerning for a cancer diagnosis are not easily evaluated and treated by healthcare systems available to this population. We conducted a rapid needs assessment of cancer screening and pain and palliative care with the goal of identifying the prevalence of cancer risk factors among the Rohingya who attended local health facilities. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Kutupalong camp of Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar among the Rohingya community. Data were collected through purposive sampling. Face-to-face interviews were done using a structured questionnaire. Statistics were analyzed by using IBM SPSS 23. Results: Out of 85 participants, 75 were female and 10 were male. 70 (82.4%) were uneducated (defined as lacking any formal institutional education), 10 (11.8%) people completed the primary level education and only 5 (5.9%) people received secondary level education. There were many participants with pulmonary disease with 35 (41.2%) people endorsing a history of asthma, bronchitis, and/or tuberculosis. There was a lack of female menstrual sanitation and hygiene with only 25 (29.4%) patients using sanitary napkins, that were donated by Non Government Organizations. Only 5.9% of the women had received any form of cervical cancer screening. Conclusion: This study identifies risk factors associated with cancers and life-limiting diseases among the FDMN Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. It is necessary to develop targeted education, cancer screening and cancer awareness programs for this population.
Highlights
In 2017 due to an escalation of violence against the Rohingya Communities of the Rakhine State, close to 700,000 people fled across the border to Bangladesh without supplies, food and non-food items, or medicine [1]
This study identifies risk factors associated with cancers and life-limiting diseases among the Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMN) Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh
Fifteen (17.6%) people were familiar with lung cancer, twenty-five (29.4%) people knew about breast cancer, ten (11.8%) people had heard of cervical cancer, Table 2
Summary
In 2017 due to an escalation of violence against the Rohingya Communities of the Rakhine State, close to 700,000 people fled across the border to Bangladesh without supplies, food and non-food items, or medicine [1]. Organization of health outreach and communication of services to communities goes through the refugee camp social structure which uses a Majhi, a leader who is chosen by the community to communicate with the host community [5]. Large numbers of Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMN), called the Rohingya community, in Bangladesh face chronic life-threatening illnesses. We conducted a rapid needs assessment of cancer screening and pain and palliative care with the goal of identifying the prevalence of cancer risk factors among the Rohingya who attended local health facilities. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in the Kutupalong camp of Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar among the Rohingya community. Conclusion: This study identifies risk factors associated with cancers and life-limiting diseases among the FDMN Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh. It is necessary to develop targeted education, cancer screening and cancer awareness programs for this population
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