Stop Considering Me as the Ministry of Health's Oncology Consultant: Gevorg Tamamyan to Arsen Torosyan

“I hereby inform you that you should stop perceiving me as the oncology consultant of the Ministry of Health from now on.” This statement was made by Gevorg Tamamyan, head of the Pediatric Oncology and Blood Diseases Center of the R.H. Yolian Blood Center, in a Facebook post directed at Minister of Health Arsen Torosyan. He specifically noted:

“There are numerous reasons for my decision, and you are very well aware of them, as I have never concealed them. However, the most important reason is that you have never wanted to step out of the theater you have created yourself, preferring Facebook's false commentary and populist statements over rational discourse. I regret this, as you had all the opportunities to make real changes in Armenia's healthcare system, yet you chose lies and deceit, opting for the room where you would appear the smartest, completely failing to understand that by filling the sector with envious and narrow-minded individuals, you are destroying it.”

“Indeed, it is sad, because you have created an image of a fair and hardworking person in the eyes of many, who thinks about their health day and night, but all of this is far from reality. People will surely wake up one day and see that the king is naked, that all of it was just a veil and that your only concern is your narrow personal interests and popularity.”

“I have tried numerous times to bring you back to reality, but to no avail. In my last interview (and why through an interview? Because you always avoid face-to-face discussions), I once again pointed out issues, urging you to attentively listen even to the harshest criticism. Sometimes, the sound of applause drowns out reason, to which you chose to respond in your familiar style by fabricating slanders.”

“For the last two days, I have been hearing from the Ministry of Health, per your instruction, trying to reach our best pediatric oncologists, who are also dear friends and mentors to me, suggesting that they become the Ministry of Health’s pediatric oncology consultants. It was a brilliant calculation, of course. I would never object to such a candidate and you would smoothly get rid of your oncology consultant. However, there was one big ‘but’—unlike you and many faces situated around you, positions and chairs have never held any significance for us.”

“And for your information, I have been aware of your every call and word. Instead of directly conveying your desire to me, you attempted to apply the ‘divide and conquer’ principle. Perhaps you forgot that the first time you offered this ‘position,’ I declined, believing that there were more deserving candidates in the field. It was only afterwards that I agreed, naively believing that I could contribute positively. But life showed otherwise...”

“And sincerely, I advise you not to enter into a debate, neither directly nor indirectly; otherwise, I promise that even those who diligently defend and fabricate for you will experience deep disappointment.”

This is all!

Gevorg Tamamyan
Head of the Pediatric Oncology and Blood Diseases Center of the R.H. Yolian Blood Center
Chair of the Pediatric Oncology and Hematology Department of Yerevan State Medical University
Co-chair of the Working Group on Supportive Care in Pediatric Oncology in Developing Countries
Newly elected chair of the IDEA Working Group of the American Society of Clinical Oncology
President of the Union of Armenian Physicians