The Art Series: Elements Yoga Mats Launching
Last October 20, 2020, we finally launched The Art Series: Elements yoga mats. This collaborative effort with local artist, Sigwada, will make you part of a greater cause - to help indigent musculoskeletal tumor patients with their treatment.
About Sigwada
Sigwada Knicolai is a fine arts graduate from the University of The Philippines and a passionate artist of 20 years. She volunteered exactly one year ago at the Philippine Orthopedic Center (POC) Musculoskeletal Tumor Unit. With her artistic talents and skill, she helped put smiles on the faces of musculoskeletal tumor patients. To rekindle the happiness that the patients once experienced in POC, Sigwada explored and incorporated various vivid textures, blending them with vibrant and picturesque colors. Her art and style definitely bring life to these yoga mats by depicting the joy the patients experienced that day.
She has been very committed to helping these people in any way she possibly can, through her creativity and her generosity.
The Philippine Orthopedic Center (POC) Musculoskeletal Tumor Unit
The Philippine Orthopedic Center (POC) Musculoskeletal Tumor Unit was established in 1993 to cater to the needs of indigent patients of POC with both benign and malignant tumors. Their subspecialty is orthopedic oncology, which began to take off in the Philippines around that time as well. From that time until the mid-2010s the average number of patients ranged from 10 to 30 a week.
Since last year and especially now during the Covid-19 era, the unit caters up to 30 patients a day, both children and adults. They are all indigent where even a bus fare to POC is difficult for most of them. Many have transferred to POC for their bone and soft tissue cancer care because other hospitals like the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) and the East Avenue Medical Center are focusing on Covid patients.
The most costly of course is the treatment of malignant tumors/cancers. These patients need 6 cycles of chemo in total, apart from surgery (1 cycle a month) to complete treatment. The unit's staff often pay for transportation and chemotherapy of the patients or find ways to get them help because the PCSO and DSWD have more restrictions for coverage. Throughout this process though, these patients need regular CT scans and other workups to monitor for metastases/cancer spread and check for recurrence. These are where most of the patients struggle because the CT scans cost from 5000 to 15000php each.
The cause
For every purchase of The Art Series: Elements yoga mat, PHP 1,000 will go to the Philippine Orthopedic Center (POC) Musculoskeletal Tumor Unit to help indigent patients with their chemotherapy and tests.
This collaboration with Sigwada gives MIPZAH the opportunity to give back to the community and at the same time share with you pieces of vibrant art in your yoga mat that will surely bring out your inner element in your fitness journey.
For more information, check out The Art Series: Elements by MIZPAH X Sigwada.