ANNOUNCEMENT 19/03/2019
Announcement from the Cyprus Oncology Society (OEK)
On the occasion of a report in the newspaper Phileleftheros dated 17/3/19 entitled “The cry of a cancer patient who… refuses to die”, in which medical protocols are criticized and characterized as “protocols of pain”, the Oncological Society of Cyprus (OEK) has the following to observe.
Medical protocols based on international guidelines are the main pillar of evidence-based medicine, the implementation of which has helped millions of patients worldwide. Their implementation guarantees the indications of the proposed treatments and ensures quality medical care.
Without overlooking the knowledge, judgment and experience of each physician, the practice of medicine, and especially Oncology, based on protocols ensures the administration of internationally recognized treatments, increases the degree of success and reduces risks for patients.
The administration of even recognized treatments outside the indications set by the guidelines may in some cases lead to palliative results, but they do not replace internationally recognized practices.
It is for the above reasons that OEK considers it unacceptable to characterize medical protocols as “pain protocols” and calls on patients to follow the therapeutic recommendations of Oncology Councils. At the same time, it calls on journalists to be particularly careful in using expressions and characterizations that can give wrong messages and cause confusion in the public.
