#RIPMayowa: Lessons for Nigerian women from Mayowa Ahmed's DEATH #HNNHealth

Dear Nigerians, Let me clarify this tweet again. Pap smears screen for cervical cancer while ovarian cancer is screened with pelvic exams, CAT scans and Magnetic Resonance imaging MRI. The same with uterine cancer which killed Dora Akunyili. We all remember how Dora looked at the end as she had been ravaged by the disease. These equipment are not always readily available to the public. Nigeria does not have a modern health system with health insurance that will pay for it. 

Can u pay N350,000 for an MRI? What everyone is arguing with me on Twitter is understandable. My point is let us women still start with a basic pap smear once a year to at least rule out ANY CANCER CELLS. Ignorance does not excuse STUPIDITY. The baddest cancer in Nigeria now is breast cancer and women still dont get mammograms yearly. Most can't afford it. I have used pics of myself in bikinis to illustrate how to do breast self exams on the 11th of the month. U can google them all over the net.

My conclusion is that the health sector failed Mayowa Ahmed just like it has done to so many ordinary citizens. President Buhari appointed 5 new subministers in the health sector. Some of us are talented health educators that can prevent these things by reaching the masses. Nigeria is not using us and thus explain why we are working for the foreign entities that trained us.

This is not an @officiallindaikeji or @aimakhuolutoyin blame game. Their actions believe it or not were VALID. Mayowa's family knew she was terminally ill, sought funds and got it but they did not handle her medical records well. It was splashed all over the internet and there were delays in transporting her to a medical destination. I pray for all the women suffering or dying from ovarian cancer and are not in the news. Mayowa's family should invest the rest of that money in helping others by setting up a foundation or NGO in her name to fund treatment for others.

Dr. OluKemi Omololu-Olunloyo
US trained Clinical Pharmacist/Medical Journalist/PR Specialist
‪#‎HNNHealth‬
www.HNNAfrica.com