GEMS school creates ‘World’s Largest Human Image of an Organ’ to raise awareness on lung diseases

Breaking a Guinness World Records title, 3,196 students from GEMS Cambridge International School – Abu Dhabi, under the patronage of the Emirates Allergy and Respiratory Society of the UAE, and sponsored by Novartis, formed the ‘World’s Largest Human Image of an Organ’. The previous world record set for a giant human lung, was created by more than 1,500 volunteers in Beijing.

The purpose of the event was to create awareness about Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) – a life threatening disease associated with morbidity and mortality.

The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that 210 million people worldwide have COPD and deaths from COPD are projected to increase over the next 10 years by more than 30 per cent unless underlying risk factors are addressed.

Kelvin Hornsby, Principal and CEO of GEMS Cambridge International School – Abu Dhabi, said: “At GEMS we believe that education is the corner stone in the development of a nation. We hope that creating awareness of a deadly lung disease that is on the rise in the region through the setting of a world record will draw everyone’s attention to this problem.”

Mohamed Ezz Elin, Gulf Cluster Head for Novartis pharmaceuticals, said: “COPD is a progressive disease and can be life-threatening. It makes it difficult for patients to breathe, with symptoms that have a destructive impact on the quality of life. Therefore, one of Novartis’ main focus is to raise awareness on COPD, and we would like to ensure that anyone affected by COPD realises the importance of early and correct diagnosis as well as appropriate and effective management of such a condition.” 

Last week, 2,223 GEMS Education students created the ‘Largest Human Transforming Image’ to pay tribute to the UAE on its 45th National Day.