3 March 2020 – After 5 years of taking care of patients, Radeah found herself on the other side of the fence, suffering from renal failure. Since her diagnosis three years ago, she has had to quit her work as a nurse. She now comes to hospital not to treat patients, but rather receive treatment for her illness—with dialysis sessions twice weekly. 

“I have lost 3 of my friends to renal failure and I don’t want to be next, this is why I am grateful for these sessions. When I was diagnosed with this disease, I knew that I could lose my life. I am always afraid that the dialysis equipment would stop working during my session, because if that ever happened, they would have to insert a catheter from my neck, which is very dangerous and painful,” Radeeah says. 

The burden of renal failure is agonizing, with the loom of death hovering over patients experiencing renal failure. “I don’t think anyone knows what it is like to suffer from this. You lose everything. Your body cannot cope, so you lose your job. The pain is so severe that you get depressed, feeling hopeless. When I found out that I had renal failure, it felt like my life was taken from me, these sessions have given me hope,” says Tamer. 

Tamer is a 37-year-old pharmacist who used to work days and nights for many private companies, but when he was diagnosed with renal failure, he had to stop working — his body become so frail, he could no long function normally. 

The process of going through dialysis treatment requires a lifestyle overhaul for most patients. Their lives now revolve around dialysis sessions they need twice weekly — without which they could die. 

Three years ago, Hassan also lost his livelihood after being diagnosed with renal failure. “Before the illness, I was running my own business. I had to stop because of my weekly dialysis sessions that always leave me feeling weak. And although I feel weak, at least I am still alive,” says Hassan. 

Since losing his business, Hassan has had to take his 7 children to Raimah, to stay with relatives. The cost of supporting them in the capacity city of Sana’a was too much. “Although it is difficult for me to live in Sana’a alone, especially with my condition, this is the cruelty of my current situation. I rely on donations from family and friends to sustain us and I count on these dialysis sessions to keep me alive”.

Thousands of renal failure patients in Yemen could face a fatal fate, if dialysis treatment is not secured. Their survival depends on unfettered access to uninterrupted treatment. 

“I am grateful that these sessions are free of charge. I couldn’t afford them otherwise,” concluded Tamer. 

In 2019, WHO, with support from King Salman Humanitarian and Relief Center (KSRelief), United Arab Emirates Aid, and Kuwait, managed to provide dialysis supplies to support 21 dialysis centres by 600 000 dialysis sessions in 13 governorates (Amanat Al Asimah, Aden, Taiz, Sana'a, Sa’adah, Ma’rib, Shabowa, Hadramout, Dhamar, Al Bidha, Ibb, Hudaydah, and Al Mahrah) to cover the urgent need of more than 3500 patients requiring life-saving dialysis sessions to ensure continued treatment. 

27 February 2020 – In a health centre called the 26th September, 50-year-old Mariam fought for her life as cholera and heart disease ravaged her body. Mariam was rushed to the health centre after suffering from severe watery diarrhoea, dehydration and hypertension.

“She was shaking uncontrollably, and I was terrified to lose her especially as she also suffers from heart disease,” said Waheed, Mariam’s young son.

Two days have passed since Mariam was hospitalized, now she is receiving treatment for cholera.

“I had suspicions that my mother had cholera. I was infected with cholera 2 years ago, so I understood the symptoms, this is why I rushed her to the same health centre where I was treated successfully,” Waheed added.

23 February 2020 – Breast cancer is the most common type of cancer among women worldwide, impacting 2.1 million women each year, causing the greatest number of cancer-related deaths among women. In 2018, WHO estimated that 627 000 women died from breast cancer – approximately 15% of all cancer deaths among women. While breast cancer rates are higher among women in more developed regions, rates are increasing in nearly every region globally.  

In Yemen, a country in conflict and economic freefall, breast cancer accounts for a quarter of diagnosed female cancers. The main problem in Yemen is related to late detection. Early diagnosis is critical in improving outcomes and survival of breast cancer, especially in a low-resourced health system like Yemen’s, made more fragile by this current context.

Mammography machines support the early detection of breast cancer, and these machines are available in only two hospitals – Al Jumhori and Al Kuwait hospitals located in Sana’a. The one in Al Kuwait hospital is out of service, while the one at Al Jumhori oncology center is extremely overloaded and cannot meet the needs alone.

“The support provided by WHO provides a chance at a better life for thousands of women in Yemen. Providing Al Jumhuri hospital with the mammography machine provides increased opportunities to detect breast cancer early on,” said Dawlah, the manager of the CR Mammography centre in Al-Jumhori Hospital Sana’a.

WHO and the World Bank through the Emergency Health and Nutrition Project (EHNP) provided Al-Jumhori hospital with a computed radiography mammography machine aiming to increase access to breast cancer detection at an early stage, allowing for more effective treatment, hence reducing the risk of death from breast cancer.

Through the EHNP, WHO, UNICEF and World Bank have kept Yemen’s health facilities running. An estimated 16.4 million people in Yemen are in urgent need of health care, and health facilities in Yemen, at times, lack the basic necessities to keep them running, like fuel, water and commodities that have become scarce. Health facilities relying on fuel-powered generators to ensure that life-saving medical equipment works. The EHNP is protecting Yemen’s health system. As the project continues to expand, humanitarian access still remains one of the biggest challenges to implementation. However, since the project launched, much has been done, paving the way for increased access to health care for all Yemenis.