Dr Aisha Ali Issaka, a Gynaecologist at the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), has said that, not all lumps in the breast of women are cancerous but it is important to seek medical attention early.
Speaking with the media, after a breast cancer screening for women in the Asokore Mampong Municipality, she advised women to adopt the habit of self-examining their breast to ensure early detection of breast cancer.
She said the best way to prevent breast cancer is early detection, diagnosis and treatment and urged women to do self-examination every month and report to any health facility when they notice a lump in their breast.
Dr. Issaka underlined the need for women to seek knowledge on issues concerning the breast since there were a lot of misconceptions leading to needless deaths adding that, a few of the women who were screened had lumps and some breast disorders and were referred for further examination.
Hajia Zeinab Sallaw, the Ashanti Regional Director of the Microfinance and Small Loans Centre (MASLOC) organized the screening in collaboration with the New Patriotic Party (NPP) Health Caucus at KATH.
The aim was to raise awareness of breast cancer and also encourage women in the Municipality to examine their breast regularly to avert the possibility of becoming a victim of the dreaded disease.
Hajia Zeinab Sallaw also in an interaction with the media said, she organized the screening as part of her commitment to address the health needs of people and also give back to the community where she grew.
“As a person who was raised in Zongo, I owe the community the responsibility to promote their welfare, having been given appointment in government.”
She said she was emulating President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo for the numerous interventions he has introduced to improve the lives of the people of Zongo and promised to extend the exercise to other Zongos outside Kumasi.
According to reports, breast cancer is the most common cancer that affects women and the most common cause of cancer deaths in Ghana. According to the Ghana Health Service (GHS), previous studies find Ghanaian women are diagnosed at a younger age and at more advanced stages (III and IV), and have tumors with characteristics similar to African American women.
Reports also say that, the number of women getting breast cancer in Ghana has increased over the years and is expected to rise with changing lifestyles and increased reporting of cases.
In Ghana, there were over 2,000 cases of breast cancer in 2012, only one to two of breast cancers are found in men and most of the patients are between 40 and 49 years.
The key to successful treatment of breast cancer lies in its early detection, unfortunately, 60 to 70 per cent of Ghanaian women report to hospital in the late stages when the cancer cells may have already spread to other parts of the body and this is what eventually leads to death.
Also, October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, which is marked in countries across the world, and helps to increase attention and support for awareness, early diagnosis, and treatment as well as palliative care for those facing this disease.
