Health

Brain Tumors often diagnosed too late in Ghana- Dr. Emmanuel Yao Voado

By Godfred Zina

A Consultant Neurosurgeon and Co-Lead, Conjoined Twins Separation Team, at the Greater Accra Regional Hospital (Ridge Hospital), Dr. Emmanuel Yao Voado has revealed that Brain Tumors are usually diagnosed too late in Ghana, as some patients are already in advanced stages.

According to the Neurosurgeon, he has stayed overseas for about 28 years and Brain Tumors in those countries are often detected by the Medical System at the initial stages of the disease.

“The fundamental thing is that Brain Tumors in Ghana are diagnosed late, I studied in Cuba, I went to Cuba at the age of 14 years and stayed 28 years outside Ghana. When I was outside Ghana, we detected Brain Tumors at their beginning, when they were very small, okay”, he said.

Dr. Voado added that Brain Tumor diagnosed in Ghana is almost too late due to the fact that Doctors and patients do not act quickly to diagnose Brain Tumor, besides specific causes for the disease are not yet known.

“When you come to Ghana, when the Brain Tumor Tumor is diagnosed it is almost too late, and it is just because of the fact that both the people of Ghana and the Doctors do not act quickly to diagnose the Brain Tumor.”

Speaking to Host Valerie Danso on the #gtvbreakfastshow, Monday, December 13, 2021, the Consultant Neurosurgeon said there are no specific signs that causes Brain Tumor because Scientists have not been able to determine a specific cause of the disease.

“…Scientists have not been able to determine a single cause of Brain Tumor”.

Dr. Emmanuel Yao Voado explained that for now symptoms of Brain Tumor are Headaches, Nausea and Vomiting.

“The fundamental one (symptom) is headache that we have to take into account okay, another possible symptom is Nausea Vomiting “, he posited.

He suggested that ”if the headache begins to act as not your normal headache you use to have and it begins to act more frequently okay, even if your Doctor does not tell you, go and get a (computerized tomography (CT) scan) CT scan… you can have a visual impairment from blur vision to lost of peripheral vision when that happens go to your Doctor and get a Brain CT Scan at least”.

”Hearing loss, okay, numbness or loss of strength on one side of the body, you have to run to your Doctor and ask for a CT Scan immediately”.

Dr. Emmanuel Yao Voado said Brain Tumor is a mass of growth in any part of the Brain, and this mass of Brain growth can be due to an error in the growth of cells in the Brain.

Below is the full interview;