Breast Care Ltd organizes Breast Cancer Awareness carnival

By Duncan Mlanjira

Breast Cancer Awareness campaigners, Breast Care Ltd, has organised a carnival scheduled for October 27 at the Old Lucky Luciano near South End School along Chikwawa Road where there will be screening for breast cancer.

Among other activities include a 5km awareness walk, a flea market, food stalls, beer garden and music.

Founder of Breast Care Ltd, Ria Duke, a breast cancer survivor, said the event is also a fundraiser for their future activities and participants of the 5km walk shall be expected to contribute a minimum of K3,500 per entry.

She said that fee shall allow the contributor to have access to free breast screening.

A flier translated into Chichewa

She added that they are in constant touch with Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, which handle a huge overflow of people that visit the hospital for breast related problems.

“To reach out to people in the rural areas, we designed a breast cancer awareness flyer that was translated from English into Chichewa with illustrations for people who can’t read,” she said.

For breast cancer awareness to be enhanced, Duke said there is need for people to have regular self examination.

“People are also encouraged to have be screened at least once a year at the Breast Care Ltd,” she said. “Our screening clinic is at Chitawira Private Hospital. 

“If people see any changes in their breasts, they are encouraged to have them seen to immediately,” said.

October is the Breast Cancer Awareness Month, observed globally, which helps to increase attention and support for the awareness, early detection and treatment as well as palliative care of this disease.

There are about 1.38 million new cases and 458,000 deaths from breast cancer each year, as according to a reports by IARC Globocan. 

The report said breast cancer is by far the most common cancer in women worldwide, both in the developed and developing countries. 

In low and middle income countries the incidence has been rising up steadily in the last years due to increase in life expectancy, increase urbanization and adoption of western lifestyles.

Currently there is not sufficient knowledge on the causes of breast cancer, therefore, early detection of the disease remains the cornerstone of breast cancer control. 

When breast cancer is detected early, and if adequate diagnosis and treatment are available, there is a good chance that breast cancer can be cured. 

If detected late, however, curative treatment is often no longer an option. In such cases, palliative care to relief the suffering of patients and their families is needed.

The majority of deaths occur in low and middle-income countries, where most women with breast cancer are diagnosed in late stages due mainly to lack of awareness on early detection and barriers to health services. 

World Health Organisation (WHO) promotes comprehensive breast cancer control programmes as part of national cancer control plans.