Kuala Lumpur, November 19, 2008 -- GE Healthcare is hosting its inaugural South East Asia media summit in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The event is part of global program that facilitates a dialogue on healthcare issues and early health by bringing together healthcare reporters with leading healthcare luminaries.
The two-day event in Kuala Lumpur will focus on how countries in South East Asia are approaching women's healthcare and will also feature best practices. Speakers include;
"I am extremely encouraged by the sustained political commitment that governments across South East Asia are making in women's health and the resulting screening initiatives and best practices. We decided to host our inaugural summit in Kuala Lumpur, because Malaysia shines as a beacon in its nationwide approach to women's healthcare. GE Healthcare is proud to work closely with both the private and public sector across the region to help them realize their vision," said Arun Sharma, CEO and President, GE Healthcare South East Asia.
Bone, breast, obstetrical and heart health are the main focus for its Women's Health discipline, with GE Healthcare developing technologies that enable earlier detection, more accurate diagnoses and personalized treatment plans for women affected by cancer, heart disease, stroke and other conditions. For example, GE Healthcare's mammography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and ultrasound systems facilitate screening for breast cancer, reducing mortality.
"The World Health Organization's International agency for research on Cancer IARC included that there is a 35% reduction in mortality from breast cancer among screened women aged 50-69 years. This means out of every 500 women screened, 1 life will be saved," said Mr Sharma.
"Through media summits, messages like this (the importance of breast screening) gets conveyed, forming the cornerstone of how we communicate our vision of Early Health externally. GE Healthcare's vision of Early Health is to transform healthcare by focusing on earlier diagnosis and prevention of disease instead of late stage treatment. Ultimately that means people lead longer and more productive lives," he added.
One such best practice featured at the summit will examine GE Healthcare's work with the Pantai Medical Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in the area of breast cancer screening.
"Between 2002 and October 2008, we have conducted a total of 17,176 mammograms. We are constantly trying to increase awareness of the importance of breast cancer screening and detection," said Dr M Devanand, consultant breast surgeon.
Pantai Breast Care Centre, one of the centres of excellence at Pantai Medical Centre was established in May 2006 and offers a multidisciplinary approach in the treatment of breast cancer. It offers a holistic approach to all facets of breast cancer and how it affects society, from awareness and education, screening and detection, treatment and care to post-treatment support for breast cancer survivors. The Centre operates in collaboration with the many services available at the hospital and offers high standards of diagnostic and treatment procedures, based on many years of experience in the field of breast cancer. The success of the Breast Care Centre over the years is a reflection of the dedication and passion that is part of each member of the team and partly the reason it now serves over 4,000 patients each year. With all the necessary skills and technology that is being employed by the centre, its greatest offering is still the support and hope that it gives each woman as they enter through its doors.
About GE Healthcare
GE Healthcare provides transformational medical technologies and services that are shaping a new age of patient care. Our expertise in medical imaging and information technologies, medical diagnostics, patient monitoring systems, performance improvement, drug discovery, and biopharmaceutical manufacturing technologies is helping clinicians around the world re-imagine new ways to predict, diagnose, inform, treat and monitor disease, so patients can live their lives to the fullest.
GE Healthcare's broad range of products and services enable healthcare providers to better diagnose and treat cancer, heart disease, neurological diseases and other conditions earlier. Our vision for the future is to enable a new "early health" model of care focused on earlier diagnosis, pre-symptomatic disease detection and disease prevention. Headquartered in the United Kingdom, GE Healthcare is a $17 billion unit of General Electric Company (NYSE: GE). Worldwide, GE Healthcare employs more than 46,000 people committed to serving healthcare professionals and their patients in more than 100 countries. For more information about GE Healthcare, visit our website at www.gehealthcare.com.
For more information on GE Women's Healthcare platform http://www.gehealthcare.com/usen/whc/.
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