‘Breast cancer makes up nearly half of all cancer cases in Pakistan’

Breast cancer cases amount to almost half of the total cancer cases in Pakistan. The risk of men contracting breast cancer in the country has also increased from one per cent to four per cent.

Pink Ribbon Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Umer Aftab provided this information at a fundraising event for the Pink Ribbon Hospital that was held at the Avari Towers on Sunday evening.

The guests were told that Pink Ribbon was founded in 2004 to create awareness about breast cancer and provide treatment to needy persons with the disease. Aftab said Pink Ribbon has successfully broken the taboo over the years, as now people freely talk about breast cancer.

The event, which also featured musical performances, was held to raise funds for the Pink Ribbon Hospital in Lahore, the country’s first dedicated health facility for breast cancer meant to offer free diagnostic services and treatment for the disease.

The CEO said the hospital’s building has been completed and diagnostic services started. He said that now Pink Ribbon is in the process of setting up surgical wards at the facility, for which it requires philanthropists’ support.

He also thanked national institutions like the Higher Education Commission of Pakistan, the State Bank of Pakistan, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority and the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority for supporting the cause of Pink Ribbon.

Aftab also acknowledged the contributions from the people of Karachi for his welfare project. He said the Pink Ribbon Hospital in Lahore was mostly funded by the people of Karachi, and the organisation intends to build a similar health facility in Karachi in the future.

Mehnaz Nadeem, chairperson of the Friends of Pink Ribbon Karachi, also spoke on the occasion, and thanked the sponsors for supporting Pink Ribbon.

According to a press release issued by the organisers, when fully functional, the Pink Ribbon Hospital would serve 40,000 deserving patients annually, and offer treatment and diagnostic services free of charge.

The fundraising event concluded with a music concert by The Flying Carpet Company. Five talented singers presented yesteryears’ film melodies of

Pakistan.

The vocalists — Ahad Khan, Maria Saud, Kainat John, Maha Aslam and Abdul Rafay — presented some evergreen Pakistani film songs of the 1950s, the 1960s and the 1970s that were sung by popular singers like Noor Jehan, Mehdi Hassan, Ahmed Rushdi, Mehnaz, Runa Laila, Masood Rana, Akhlaq Ahmed and Naheed Akhtar.

The singers not only sang solo songs but also presented duets, such as Noor Jehan and Mehdi Hassan’s ‘Aap Ko Bhool Jayen Hum’, and Akhlaq Ahmed and Runa Laila’s ‘Sawan Aaye Sawan Jaaye’.

The solo songs that enthralled the audience included Noor Jehan’s ‘Chandni Raatein’, Runa Laila’s ‘Kaate Na Kate Re’, Mehdi Hassan’s ‘Yun Zindagi Ki Raah Mein’, Ahmed Rushdi’s ‘Ko Ko Korina’, Mehnaz’s ‘Mera Pyar Tere Jeevan Ke’ and Naheed Akhtar’s ‘Kisi Mehrban Ne Aake’.