Dr Suresh Venkita

But amidst the fear, Dr Suresh Venkita, medical director at the Pacific International Hospital reminds people that there is still hope.

He says cancer is one area greatly researched even today, and there are advancements on cure and prevention, targeted specifically for before the cancer forms.

This, he says, allows for early detection, prevention as much as possible, or for diagnosis, treatment and survival of the cancer.

“We are trying to take away fear of the cancer and bring back hope and confidence,” he said.

If you have coronary artery disease, the arteries in your heart are narrowed or blocked by a sticky material called plaque.

It actually begins in a simple process, says cardiologist Dr Suresh Venkita.

The heart muscle pumps all the time – from the day it begins in the foetus, it continues beating – day in, day out, with no rest at all.

For this, the heart requires blood to flow continuously through the coronary artery to its muscle.

Two major arteries are responsible for the blood supply to the heart. These coronary arteries are small tubes that carry oxygenated blood from the aorta to the heart muscle.

Medical doctors at the Pacific International Hospital say it would have been a different story if Lagot had ignored the numbness in both arms.

Lagot was lifting heavy equipment when he experienced his first ever signs of heart attack.

"That's how it (heart attack) happens," Dr Suresh Venkita, cardiologist and medical director, PIH, explained on Wednesday.

Lagot said the feeling of numbness in both arms was present for a long while so without hesitation, he went to the hospital that same night.

“I thought it was a normal chest pain,” he recalls.

The 3-day advanced cardiac camp has been organised with the West New Britain Provincial Health Authority.

The camp commences today, July 5, and runs through to Friday, July 7, and will be stationed at the Kimbe General Hospital.

The camp will conduct ECG tests, echo-cardiogram & will have a senior consultant (cardiologist) – Dr Suresh Venkita – counselling patients, for free.

He will also talk to the aggregated medical fraternity (grand round) on the medical aspects of heart failure, in a talk titled “Heart Failure - Recent Advances” on Friday (8am – 9am).

Dr Suresh Venkita from the Pacific International Hospital reminds you that “a high intake of sugar any time is unwise”.

In an apparently healthy person, he says, sugar is a fuel which has to be burned efficiently and quickly before it is turned into fat (like surplus money which is parked in a fixed deposit!).

There’s also the risk of accidents due to high sugar intake in one time.

How?

These camps are to identify heart related conditions in people.

This follows a successful three-day screen camp in Goroka last month, March.

PIH now aims to do this as a monthly exercise, free of charge, in main areas and inaccessible areas.

The idea to run this for free is too encourage people to come forward for screening without any fear, says Dr Suresh Venkita - Medical Doctor and Chief Physician (Cardiology and internal medicine).

A feeling of sadness, hopelessness, loneliness, a sense of futility in life and inability to think clearly or take any action, says Dr Suresh Venkita, a medical doctor with the Pacific International Hospital.

World Health Day for 2017 passed by on April 7 with the focus on ‘depression’.

Here, Dr Venkita, also the Chief Physician at PIH, discusses depression.

He says, even getting out of bed becomes an impossible task and there is no will to face the day.