By Solomon Gumah
Tamale, June 21, GNA – Madam Enam Setsoafia, Chairperson, Outreach Department, Breast Society of Ghana has advised women to prioritise undergoing regular breast screening to reduce deaths recorded as result of breast cancer.
She said breast cancer was the leading cause of cancer among women in the country, adding early detection was the best approach towards ensuring that more lives were not lost through the disease.
Madam Setsoafia gave the advice in an interview with the Ghana News Agency during a breast screening exercise undertaken in Tamale by the Breast Society of Ghana.
The campaign was to sensitise and address some of the misconceptions associated with breast cancer and the need for patients to seek medical attention to avoid complications, and deaths.
Madam Setsoafia said, “the treatment of breast cancer is quite expensive, especially for vulnerable women. So, we encourage early screening to ensure timely treatment.”
She touched on the causes of breast cancer and said excessive consumption of alcohol and other lifestyles had the tendency to expose women to the disease, advising them to desist from such habits.
She appealed to men to also avail themselves for breast cancer screening as they were not immune from the disease.
Mrs Gifty Safo Annan, Member, Breast Society of Ghana, Northern Region, underscored need for the provision of the necessary treatment equipment at the various health centres to facilitate health professionals’ response to the disease.
She lamented the absence of a radiotherapy centre in the Northern Region lacked and said it was a threat to the fight against breast cancer in the region.
She appealed to the government, NGOs, and philanthropists to provide a radiotherapy centre to help address issues of breast cancer in the region.
Madam Atika Abudu, a Breast Cancer survivor, who shared her experience during the exercise, encouraged other women not to allow their busy schedules and other erroneous orientations to prevent them from knowing their status.
At the end of the exercise, 61 women were screened, 58 recorded negative whilst three were detected with lumps in their breasts.
About 39 out of the total number screened were over 40 years and were advised to do mammogram for further examination.
Only 16 of them expressed interest in undertaking the mammogram whilst the rest declined due to financial constraints.
GNA