Sindh High Court Chief Justice Muhammad Junaid Ghaffar lauded the state-of-the-art cancer treatment facilities at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre (JPMC) during his visit to the CyberKnife unit on Saturday. He was received by Mushtaq Chhapra, Shabbir Dewan, Professor Tariq Mehmood, and other officials. The Chief Justice toured the Radiation Oncology Department and commended the joint efforts of the Patients Aid Foundation and the Sindh provincial administration.
A presentation highlighted JPMC’s remarkable growth, increasing its current capacity to 2208 beds from 1185 in 2012. The ongoing construction of the 12-story Sardar Yasin Malik Medical Complex will add 550 beds. The upcoming 7-story Rabia Rashid S???ti Ward will solidify JPMC as Pakistan’s largest medical institution. The Chief Justice was assured that all medical services are provided free of charge, benefiting individuals from 15 countries and 167 cities.
Officials briefed the Chief Justice on the latest advancements in CyberKnife technology. The state-of-the-art system, donated by the Sindh government, delivers treatment in just 23 minutes, a significant improvement from the 150 minutes required in 2012 and 60 minutes in 2018. CyberKnife treatment is recognized for its effectiveness and safety in treating brain and early-stage prostate cancer.
JPMC currently operates two TomoTherapy machines, with two more expected by year-end. The Bilqees and Abdul Sattar Edhi Breast Radiation facility, staffed entirely by women, reduces breast cancer treatment from 16-28 sessions to just 5 and serves 160 individuals daily.
Justice Ghaffar termed the advanced facilities a “ray of hope” for cancer patients, urging other medical institutions to adopt JPMC’s model of free, high-quality care. He praised the visionary partnership between the people of Sindh, philanthropists, and the Patients Aid Foundation and provincial administration. He emphasized the urgent need for recruiting expert personnel and implementing robust hospital management strategies.
The Patients Aid Foundation presented a commemorative shield to the Chief Justice to mark his visit.