INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
The tumours that kept growing in her chest were cut out three times before Noor Saimun, a Rohingya refugee in Bangladesh, was tested for
By the time it was diagnosed, the cancer had spread from her breast throughout her body.Saimun now spends her days incapacitated by pain,
lying on the floor of her bamboo shelter
I spend my whole day lying in bed
Instead, they are caused by a combination of genetic, physiological, environmental and behavioural factors
Approximately 80% are preventable, and all are on the rise, spreading inexorably around the world as ageing populations and lifestyles
pushed by economic growth and urbanisation make being unhealthy a global phenomenon.NCDs, once seen as illnesses of the wealthy, now have a
diagnosed accurately or treated.Investment in tackling these common and chronic conditions that kill 71% of us is incredibly low, while the
are seeing a fraction of the money needed being invested or donated
Attention remains focused on the threats from communicable diseases, yet cancer death rates have long sped past the death toll from malaria,
TB and HIV/Aids combined.'A common condition' is a Guardian series reporting on NCDs in the developing world: their prevalence, the
solutions, the causes and consequences, telling the stories of people living with these illnesses.Tracy McVeigh, editorThank you for your
feedback.This week the UN warned that people caught up in humanitarian emergencies are at increased risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer,
diabetes and other non-communicable diseases (NCDs), which are responsible for more than 70% of deaths worldwide.It is estimated that
strokes and heart attacks are up to three times more likely after a disaster, and UN agencies are meeting in Denmark this week to ensure
that care and treatment for NCDs are included as a standard part of humanitarian emergency preparedness and response.View image in
six years after the refugees started to arrive, driven from their homes in Myanmar by the military, the prospect of returning home is as
For those living with chronic illnesses, they contend with funding cuts that mean a lack of medication, struggles to get the nutrition
said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the head of the World Health Organization.For Saimun, it was only after the three surgeries and an
incorrect tuberculosis diagnosis from camp clinics that she found the money and obtained the permission necessary to travel the 25 miles to
fourth and final journey.Restrictions on Rohingya working or moving beyond the camps are among the conditions that make living with chronic
illnesses more difficult than in Myanmar, where despite persecution from the military, their rural surroundings provided them with better
Myanmar military, are sprawling and many of their residents desperate
Funding cuts have hit food as well as healthcare, which only had 25% of its needs funded in 2023, while rising crime inside the camps and de
Photograph: Pau Miranda/MSFWhile most Rohingya would like to return to their homes, they demand a guarantee of safety and the restoration of
Instead, Myanmar faces widespread fighting between the military junta and armed groups, including in their native Rakhine where the rebel
Arakan Army recently forced hundreds of Myanmar troops into Bangladesh.In response the Myanmar military has reportedly conscripted Rohingya
said the government is struggling to deal with the long-term burden of the refugees, especially with reduced aid funding, and that it wants
a dignified and voluntary repatriation
But they accused the world of forgetting the Rohingya crisis and said influential countries such as the US and UK had not put enough
Camp life is like an open prisonMany of the Rohingya living with chronic illnesses blame their lives in the camps for their conditions,
saying the restriction on movement and work force them into being idle while the lack of access to healthy food increases the risk of
becoming ill.Abul Hossain, 41, says he recently spent several months in Myanmar working as a fisher and farmer because he could not work in
Bangladesh and that the activity meant he no longer experienced the symptoms of the diabetes he was diagnosed with in 2019, two years after
he arrived as a refugee.View image in fullscreenAbul Hossain, 41, who developed diabetes two years after arriving in Bangladesh as a
Rohingya refugee from Myanmar
for kidney disease but he cannot afford to pay for the tests
who MSF cannot reach have to often leave the camps and pay for private healthcare, which presents specific challenges to some, such as
insulin users who might have to go to a clinic for injections but need to organise transport.View image in fullscreenPatients wait in
recognised by a 2022 study by Bangladeshi researchers, which found that among the risk factors of NCDs, 89% of the respondents lacked
physical activity in their daily lives and almost a quarter did not eat enough fruit and vegetables.Sajida, 38, has diabetes and was told
Her rations, however, barely cover the basics and do not allow her to buy a varied diet.Funding cuts have also hit rations provided by the
World Food Programme for refugees, limiting food choices mostly at the expense of protein or fibre and leaving people reliant on rice to
fill them up.View image in fullscreenThe camps have no transportation within them, making life particularly difficult for older people or
those with chronic conditions
In 2023, the WHO responded to 65 health emergencies worldwide, up from 40 in 2013
There we had everything we needed but here we are stuck in our tents
In Myanmar we had good, fresh food
to have less rice and to exercise
I mostly eat rice and lentils and sometimes dried fish
This article first appeared/also appeared in theguardian.com
