APM Terminals renovates LUTH Oncology dept to aid cancer treatment

Determined to enhance the diagnosis, treatment and care for cancer patients in Nigeria, APM Terminals Apapa Limited, operators of Nigeria’s busiest port has completed the renovation of the Oncology section of the Radiotherapy and Oncology Department of the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH).

Speaking during the commissioning of the renovated Clinic in Lagos recently, Olufemi Ransome-Kuti, deputy managing director of APM Terminals Apapa, said cancer is a leading cause of death in the world today especially in developing countries like Nigeria. This fact, he said, aroused a passion within the company to support the care and treatment of cancer patients in its host city.

“The renovation of the oncology clinic is part of our corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative, which is in line with one of our core values that focuses on sustainable business environment. This includes our employees, customers and their families,” he said.

Remi Ajekigbe, head of the Radiotherapy and Oncology Department of LUTH, expressed a sincere appreciation and gratitude to APM Terminals for taking the initiative of giving the Oncology clinic a facelift.

According to him, “Cancer is a gloomy disease, and taking care of cancer patients in a gloomy environment will be double jeopardy.”

Abigail Simon-Hart, a recovered cancer patient, who doubles as the managing director of Bricon Global Consult, who worked with APM Terminals on the renovation project, showered the company with praises for taking the lead and sponsoring the renovation work. Sharing her experience, Abigail stressed the importance of early detection of cancer and the need to have an environment conducive for treatment, which she said, would aid the speedy recovery of patients.

Recall that with a container throughput of about 700,000 Twenty Equivalent Units (TEUs) in 2014, APM Terminals Apapa is the busiest container terminal in the West African region, handling 50 percent of Lagos inbound containers. The company’s $350 million investments and expansion programme since 2006, has resulted in container volumes more than doubling and productivity increasing significantly, and waiting time for vessel berthing eliminated. Regular rail service, running weekly to Kano, 960 km (600 miles) from Lagos was also established in August 2013.