Family of Saudi doctors become record breakers in cancer awareness stunt

Four siblings who are all doctors, or training to become doctors, from Saudi Arabia have broken the Guinness World Records title for the most awareness ribbons on a car with 5,637 ribbons, it was announced this week.

The ribbons featured 16 different colors, representing major types of cancers as the initiative is aimed at encouraging people to take up early screening.

Rawan Amir, 28, along with twin brothers Amaar and Baraa, 23, as well as Muaaz, 17, are siblings in a wider family of seven doctors.

The parents along with another sister are also doctors in different fields. The family lost their grandfather to colon cancer, and their grandmother to ovarian cancer.

Speaking to Guinness World Records Amaar Amir said: “If we managed to educate at least one person, then there is a possibility that we save a life, which is the greatest deal for us as doctors and medical students.”

He continued: “Medical students see a lot suffering in this area. Cancer affects lots of people’s lives, and different type of cancers are possible in different ages. The earlier someone know about it the better. This makes a big difference for survivals.”

The four siblings grew up in a well-educated environment. The parents used to buy books, especially biology ones, and allow their children to read them from an early age.

According to Amaar, the medical curriculum is very strong in Saudi Arabia, so most of the family studied in the Kingdom, with some continuing their majors in the US.

Amaar and Baraa are senior medical students, while Rawan is a Cardiology Fellow. Their brother Muaaz is high school graduate who has applied to medical school. Their elder sister is also an Endocrinology Fellow, while their mother is Chief of Pathology, and finally their father is Consultant Nephrologist.

Living in Dhahran in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, the team used their family car, Toyota Rav 4, for the attempt. They have also used 56,370 centimeters of ribbons, and 21,385 cm of double-sided tape, all cut individually by hand to create 10cm ribbons, and placed on the car.

The family’s work and study schedules are usually busy, so they decided to do something special and bring benefit to the community. In ribbons and tape, they have used six times the height of The Great Pyramid of Giza, all placed on a single SUV family vehicle.

“We wanted to apply to break a Guinness World Records title because it is the gold standard in providing a platform for talented people and unique achievements. We know that our Nobel cause will reach thousands and potentially millions around the world by obtaining this prestigious certificate,” Amaar added.