One out of nine women at risk of breast cancer: experts

LAHORE:Medical experts say that one out of every nine women in the country is at risk of breast cancer. Early diagnosis and timely treatment, however, can save the lives of thousands of women every year.

Pakistan ranks seventh in the world in terms of the number of deaths from breast cancer. It has the highest prevalence of breast cancer among Asian countries, with an estimated 90,000 new cases emerging annually. Around 40,000 Pakistani women die every year because of breast cancer, requiring medical experts to call for an urgent action, including awareness and early diagnosis, to control the alarming mortality rate.

Addressing a seminar on breast cancer awareness at University of Health Sciences (UHS) on Wednesday, UHS Vice-Chancellor Professor Javed Akram said all cancers, including breast cancer, are on the rise in the country.

"Such is the magnitude of the problem that even if all the budget of Pakistan is spent on controlling only breast cancer, it will still fall short", he remarked. Professor Javed Akram added that a study group is being formed at the national level on breast cancer. The research group will include scientists and researchers from all medical universities in the country.

Professor Fridoon, Professor Nadeem Afzal, Dr Shah Jahan and others from UHS would be part of the study group. The UHS VC said that the study group would identify various risk factors that contribute to the likelihood of developing breast cancer, including age, reproductive health history, hereditary and lifestyle. He added the report of the study group would be made public in October 2021.

Akhuwat Foundation Chairman Dr Amjad Saqib, in his video message, said that breast cancer is treatable and early diagnosis is the first step of treatment. Consultant Oncologist Dr Ehsan-ur-Rehman said men needed to be aware of breast cancer than women. "Unless you add blue with pink, the knot will not open", he said indicating that men should also be taken into the loop with regards to breast cancer awareness.

Professor Shehryar, founder of a private cancer hospital, stressed that every woman over the age of 40 must have a mammography or breast x-ray once a year. He lamented that there was no facility for treatment of breast cancer in 48 teaching hospitals of Punjab."No government has installed any mammography machine in hospitals in the last 25 years. There is not a single mammography machine available in any government hospital of the province", he added.

Head of the Oncology Department at Fatima Jinnah Medical University Lahore Professor Shaheen Rashid, said it was a matter of concern that women under the age of 40 were getting breast cancer in Pakistan. The main cause of breast cancer in young women, she said, was the lifestyle and fast food. "Anxiety and stress also cause hormonal imbalances that can cause cancer", she explained.

INMOL Hospital Lahore Director Dr Abu Bakar Shahid said that 89 per cent of cancer patients in Pakistan were being treated in 18 hospitals running under Atomic Energy Commission. Noted psychiatrist Dr Ismat Laghari said that the battle of breast cancer was fought on both physical and psychological fronts.

"In Pakistan, along with the fear of disease, women also have to fight the economic fear," she said adding that all these fears also affected the human immune system. She urged that doctors, paramedics and nurses needed to be trained in how to communicate with and listen to these patients with empathy and compassion.

awareness: To raise awareness for prevention of breast cancer, Business Planning and Development Department along with management of a private hospital in the month of October organised two clinics weekly for consultation and screening of the patients.

The hospital also arranged an online awareness session of One-stop Breast Clinic. In-charge Breast Clinic Dr Sadaf Ishaque focused on the need for timely diagnosis of breast cancer disease. She told the general public that breast cancer is curable if early detected.

PU: Punjab University Health Centre in collaboration with Pink Ribbon organised Breast Cancer Awareness Programme. Prof Dr Farah Kanwal, Dr Nabeela Rehman, Dr Sadia Waseem, Dr Syeda Salmi Baqar, Dr Umda Anwaar and female students spoke on the occasion. The speakers said that breast cancer was a major cause of death worldwide and it was important to raise awareness about it to curb the rising rate in Pakistan.