The Portuguese media gave broad coverage to the seminars given by Pavel Diaz, director for international relations of the National Center for Scientific Research (CNIC, acronym in Spanish), in Lisbon and Porto on Cuban biomedical achievements.

Ana M. Diaz-Canel, councelor of the Cuban embassy in Portugal, said Diaz is also promoting the up coming Congress of the CNIC on the 40th anniversary of its foundation.

Correio de Manha, Diario de Noticias and Jornal de Noticias newspapers featured on the on going clinical trials of a new vaccine for cholera, another one for meningitis B and the seminars given by Diaz.

Diario de Noticias contrasted Cuba's biomedical achievements with the annual death toll in Portugal owed to Hepatitis C--200,000 cases of cirrhosis (30% killed by HCV) and 300 killed by liver cancer in 2002 (near 50% killed byHCV).

Gastroenterologist Rui Tato Marinho, from Santa Maria Hospital, admits to the non existence of official statistics on the morbidity of HCV, source of hepatitis C, nor an action plan to fend off the virus.

Its time to make the people know that the HCV virus owns a death toll higher than HIV/AIDS, warned the specialist in Orden de los Medicos magazine, and urged for action to fight the deadly ailment.

By: Prensa-Latina