LAHORE - Considering charity as an obligation towards community, Avari Hotel has announced its Iftar donation programme for Shaukat Khanum Memorial Cancer Hospital and Research Centre. This was announced in a Press conference at Avari on Monday. Chief Executive Officer Shaukat Khanum, Dr Faisal Sultan, Regional Manager Marketing Abid Hussain, Salman Tahir, Director of Business Development Avari Lahore Robert Overent and PR Manager Avari Ayesha Malik briefed the media about the project. Avari would donate Rs 100 on every Iftar meal served in Kim's and Tollington restaurants during Ramazan. Shaukat Khanum has no such an arrangement with any other hotel in city. The Avari hopes to give a total donation of about Rs one million. Sultan replying to queries said in Pakistan every year there are about 150,000 new cancer patients. "At Shaukat Khanum we accept 4,000 to 5,000 new cancer patients every year. Last year we spent Rs 900 million on treatment of poor patients, which means that 75 percent of all patients treated the hospital paid for them. "The expansion is going on. New intensive care unit has been built while manpower that is number of doctors and paramedical staff has also been increased. The new building's construction would start next year. This project is going to take two years to complete and with that we would have 200 more beds. Currently the hospital has 110 beds. "The Pet CT scan costing about Rs 4.5 million, which would be the first of its kind in Pakistan, is being installed. Its installation has started and would complete early next year," he said. About the establishment of cancer hospital in Karachi, he said walk-in clinic is functional and in second phase diagnostic centre would be set up. "The main project is on Link Road. The land has been acquired and soil survey is going on," he said. Sultan said breast cancer is the leading cancer in Pakistan. "The ratio of this cancer is highest among the Asian countries. We hope to start campaign for awareness about it soon," he said.