VACOAS, Mauritius: Thousands of people flocked to the Gymkhana Grounds in Vacoas, Mauritius, on Thursday to celebrate World Cancer Day.

Mauritius, through the initiative of The Cancer Association of Mauritius, (Canma) observed this day with the formation of the Pink Human Ribbon, the first ever in the Indian Ocean island nation and in Africa.

More than 5,000 people joined hands to “make a difference” in the fight against cancer by forming the pink ribbon.

“I am proud as we witnessed thousands of people joining hands together along with the cancer survivors for a good cause and making commitment to help find ways to lessen the burdens a cancer diagnosis brings,” said Canma President Raj Ramrachia.

“May today be a celebration of how far we have come in cancer survivorship, as medical advances are allowing cancer survivors to live longer, better, more productive lives than ever before. But let it also be a call to action for more resources, research, and survivor-friendly legislation to improve the quality of life of cancer survivors," he said.

Cancer is the third cause of mortality in the small island nation of 1.3 million people, reports the National Cancer Registry. The main types of cancer in Mauritius are the prostate cancer and colon cancer in men and breast cancer in women.

The largest human awareness ribbon consists of 8,264 participants and was achieved by the women of Saudi Arabia in 2015.