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Face to Face With Chronic Disease -- The Personal Impact of the Growing Epidemics of Heart Disease, Stroke, Cancer and Diabetes

Posted on: Monday, 5 September 2005, 03:01 CDT

GENEVA, Sept. 5 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- On September 2 the World Health Organization (WHO) published the first of a series of photo stories about people with chronic disease. These show the diversity of people affected by heart disease, stroke, cancer and other chronic diseases.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040610/CNTH001LOGO )

Chris de Bode, an award-winning photojournalist, travelled to Brazil, India, Pakistan and the United Republic of Tanzania to gather the stories. The result is a moving collection of images that dispel the misconception that chronic diseases affect only wealthy people in wealthy countries. Two children are among the stories featured, challenging another widely held belief: that chronic diseases, and the risk factors that contribute to them, affect only older people.

The first story in the series, published on http://www.who.int/ , features Roberto Severino Campos, who lives in a shanty town on the outskirts of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Roberto has suffered a number of strokes that have left him unable to speak or care for himself. His story speaks to the enormous personal and economic impact that his disability has had on him and his extended family.

The "Face to Face With Chronic Disease" stories will also appear in print in a new WHO report, Preventing chronic diseases: a vital investment, which will be launched on 26 October 2005. This report will provide extensive new epidemiological and economic data about the costs of chronic disease and the need for urgent action to turn back this growing global threat.

Publications are welcome to reproduce the photo stories. Contact WHO directly for permission and further details.

For further information, please contact: Amanda Marlin Tel: +41-22-791-2443 Mobile: +41-76-367-1522 Email: marlina@who.int

All WHO Press Releases, Fact Sheets and Features as well as other information on this subject can be obtained on Internet on the WHO home page: http://www.who.int/ .

Photo: NewsCom:http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040610/CNTH001LOGOAP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/PRN Photo Desk, +1-888-776-6555 or +1-212-782-2840

World Health Organization

CONTACT: Amanda Marlin of WHO, +41-22-791-2443, or mobile,+41-76-367-1522, or marlina@who.int

Web site: http://www.who.int/

Source: PRNewswire

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