Faisal, Pakistan

During the 30-year journey of Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre, many impossibles have turned into realities. The very idea of a modern cancer centre in a developing country was viewed with scepticism even by many leading medical professionals of the day. This was echoed by one of the earliest senior executives hired for the hospital who felt that while the hospital had been built, it would not survive if more than a small percentage of its patients were offered free treatment. Yet, here we are, 30 years on with two functional hospitals, a third one under construction – and over 75% of cancer patients on supported or free treatment. All because of the generosity of our donors and supporters.

When we started building a hospital information system for our institutional needs, I saw similar scepticism from various quarters, but our team of dedicated IT professionals, with the help of end-users, have developed a system that not only powers our work in clinical, administrative and financial domains but also helps to automate a number of hospitals and health systems in the country.

There are many firsts for us including the country's first PET-CT and training programmes in nursing oncology and in a number of disciplines of medicine and surgery that started at Shaukat Khanum, a reflection of the can-do in the organisation. The story of our hospital shows the importance of community support in making cancer care accessible to all!