RIYADH: Saudi Arabia joined the rest of the world in intensifying public awareness on cancer with activities spread over the week supporting the global cause that aims to save millions of lives every year by raising awareness and education about the disease, urging governments and individuals across the world to take action.

Being a truly global event observed annually on Feb. 4th, World Cancer Day unites the whole world in the fight against cancer. The Kingdom joined the massive awareness campaign with the Ministry of Health observing cancer awareness week, ending on Wednesday.

Under the auspices of Health Ministry, King Saud University (KSU), which is leading the vanguard in the Kingdom for academic excellence, the Cancer Center, and King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center (KFSH&RC) hosted the Gulf Cooperation Council Week to create public awareness on cancer.

At KSU, the College of Education organized the awareness camp to mark World Cancer Day 2016, an ideal opportunity to spread the word and raise the profile of cancer in people’s minds to save lives caused by the menace in the Kingdom.

Zafar Hasan, a KSU official, said it was a unique opportunity to raise public awareness.

“There is much we can do at as an individual, being part of the community, and at the governmental level to harness and mobilize solutions, and catalyze positive change to save lives for hundreds and thousands of people.”

Officials from KFSH&RC said their effort was aimed at defining the campaign and vision with the objectives of public awareness for the fight against cancer and prevention.

The Health Ministry’s awareness campaign will continue on a positive note with a proactive approach to the fight against cancer, highlighting that solutions do exist and that they are within our reach.

The campaign will further explore how we can implement what we already know about the prevention, early detection, treatment and care, and in turn, open up to the exciting prospect that we can impact the global cancer burden for the better, a ministry official said on Tuesday.

Notably, about 8.2 million people die from cancer worldwide every year, out of which, 4 million die prematurely (aged 30 to 69 years).