BY INDY MAEALASIA

The Oncology (Cancer) Unit at the National Referral Hospital (NRH) has been blessed with a cash donation from the reigning Miss Solomon Islands, Elsie Polosovai, and her team, presented yesterday.

Polosovai donated SBD$5,000 to the unit, which she raised through her fundraising event, “Bakes for Breast Cancer,” held in Dunedin, New Zealand, last month to mark the conclusion of Pinktober—the international breast cancer awareness month.

“It is a small amount, but it is meant to help the staff here with anything they need for their patients, especially in palliative care,” said the reigning queen.

Polosovai also paid a courtesy visit to commend the staff and express her ongoing support for the cancer trust fund initiated by former Miss Solomon Islands, Gladys Habu.

“I’m just continuing the work she started and expanding on it,” Polosovai added.

The reigning queen praised the resilience and bravery of Solomon Islands’ women despite the challenges within the current healthcare system.

She expressed her eagerness to further collaborate with the oncology unit to raise awareness about breast cancer, one of the two leading cancers in the Solomon Islands.

“NRH has informed me that their mammogram machine is now up and running. With their help, I will assist in spreading information on how to make bookings for check-ups. It is also very important for women to know how to perform self-breast examinations to detect symptoms of breast cancer,” she stated.

NRH’s Medical Superintendent, Dr. Janella Solomon, said the donation would meet several needs of the unit.

“We are approaching the festive season, and we want to help our patients feel happy this Christmas. This donation will likely be used for gifts and smaller needs in the cancer unit,” Dr. Solomon remarked.

She added that such donations would undoubtedly uplift the spirits of the patients during the upcoming festive season.