Health and Family Welfare Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Husain on Monday said the government is taking steps to expand cancer treatment facilities across the country, with the procurement of new radiotherapy and robotic surgery equipment underway.

“We are working fast to establish eight cancer institutes in the eight divisions and expand radiotherapy services at district level to ensure cancer treatment at the grassroots,” he said.

The minister made the remarks as the chief guest at the inaugural ceremony of the Medical Physics Programme at BRAC University in the capital’s Merul Badda area this morning.

The university’s Department of Mathematics and Physical Sciences has introduced the two-year master’s programme for the first time in Bangladesh to meet the growing demand for medical physicists.

Speaking about the government’s commitment to improving cancer care, Sakhawat said plans were underway to procure 17 linear accelerators to make radiotherapy more accessible across the country.

“We are also going to bring five major robotic surgery machines for the first time,” he said.

He stressed that early detection and public awareness were critical to the government’s cancer-control strategy, particularly for breast and cervical cancers. The government would intensify human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccination campaigns and promote breast cancer self-screening and awareness among women, he added.

“Without awareness, we cannot save people from cancer,” Sakhawat said, urging health professionals and educational institutions to help raise awareness at the grassroots level.

Criticising the previous government, he alleged that the “previous fascist regime” had damaged the country’s health sector through corruption and plundering.

Since taking office, the present government has taken significant steps to develop the health sector, he said, expressing hope that the implementation of planned projects would bring revolutionary changes to healthcare within the next two years.

“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, we are taking healthcare services to the village level,” the minister said.

The government plans to establish Family Wellbeing Centres in every three wards of each union and transform existing community clinics into Health Wellbeing Centres, he said. These centres will provide primary healthcare services, including blood tests and breast cancer screening.

Sakhawat said every upazila health complex would be upgraded to a 150-bed facility. The government would also strengthen dialysis, physiotherapy, maternal and newborn care services at the upazila level to reduce pressure on tertiary healthcare facilities.

The government would soon appoint 5,000 doctors and was working to increase hospital bed capacity and recruit around 41,390 healthcare workers, including 25,000 midwives, he said.

Speaking about BRAC University’s newly introduced programme, the minister assured the university of government support for medical physics education and workforce development. He said medical physicists would be recruited according to the needs of the country’s expanding cancer treatment facilities.

“Medical physics is a very important part of treatment. You do your best and improve yourselves. From the government side, we must extend our hand of cooperation to you,” he said.

Medical physicists play a crucial role in radiotherapy, as accurate radiation dosing is essential to patient safety and treatment effectiveness, Sakhawat said.

“If the dose is wrong, the patient is gone. If the dose is wrong, the doctor’s credibility is gone,” he said, stressing the need to train enough medical physicists.

He urged BRAC University students, teachers and researchers to contribute to the development of medical physics and cancer care in Bangladesh.

Professor Emeritus at Dhaka University Dr AFM Yusuf Haider, Additional Director General of the Directorate General of Health Services Professor Dr Jalal Uddin Mohammad Rumi, Bangladesh Medical University Clinical Oncology Department Chairman Professor Dr Syed Md Akram Hussain, National Institute of Cancer Research and Hospital Director Professor Dr Mostafa Aziz Sumon, and Project Director of the Establishment of Integrated Cancer, Kidney and Heart Treatment Centres across Bangladesh’s Eight Divisional Cities Dr Md Toufiq Hasan Firoz attended the event as special guests.

BRAC University Vice-Chancellor Professor Syed Ferhat Anwar chaired the programme. Mathematics and Physical Sciences Department Chairperson Professor Hasibun Naher and Registrar and Controller of Examinations Dr David Dowland delivered the welcome address.

Professor Dr Golam Abu Zakaria, former director and chief medical physicist at Gummersbach University Hospital of the University of Cologne in Germany and adviser and coordinator of the university’s Mathematics and Physical Sciences Department, presented the keynote paper. Medical Physics Programme Coordinator Professor Hasin Anupama Azhari gave an overview of the newly introduced programme.