By Hannah Dadzie
The Ghana Broadcasting Corporation Ladies’ Association in collaboration with the Trust Hospital has organized Breast Cancer and Hepatitis B screening in Accra, with continuous calls for early detection mechanisms and treatment to save lives.
The 2-day exercise is part of activities to climax the Breast Cancer Awareness Month.
Health Officials who conducted the screening warned that men can also get breast cancer, especially in the nipple and should be on the lookout.
General Medical Practitioner, Dr. Dorcas Ofosuaa Anto, said the disease is increasingly becoming a major medical concern in Ghana, and therefore advised people to live above fear and avail themselves of regular screening, adding that late detection often results in complications.
Diagnosed cases of breast cancer increase annually, prompting an urgent need for the intensification of attention on awareness creation. The situation, medical experts say also calls for routine screening preferably mammography to drive early detection and treatment to ultimately reduce the prevalence and mortality rates in society.
The screening championed by the Ghana Broadcasting Corporation Ladies’ Association in collaboration with the Trust Hospital is part of a month-long campaign on the nature and early detection of breast cancer.
Prior to the screening, Leadership of the GBC Ladies organized public education on breast Cancer and Hepatitis B. When GBC News visited, more than 120 people made up of staff and members of the public including men had been screened.
A General Practitioner with the Trust Hospital, Dr. Dorcas Ofosua Anto said there are survivors of breast cancers, and emphasized that there is no need for people to panic over the condition but seek early diagnosis and treatment to avoid all risk factors.
“Those who will come for the screening, those who will be detected to have breast cancer, we are telling them that when it’s detected you don’t end there, you make sure you go through the treatment as well. If detected early there is treatment, there are survivors and so there is no need to stay back and not come forward to be examined and go through the treatment process.” Dr. Ofosua Anto indicated.
Public Relations Officer of GBC Ladies, Renee Ata-Bedu said the organization will continue to create awareness on deadly diseases to save more lives.
“GBC Ladies, we believe that breast cancer is one of the major killers of women, so we take this opportunity to do breast screening and raise awareness in the month of October. When you come and there is a problem, there are doctors available to assist you and then to give you further advise” Madam Ata-Bedu said.
“This time around we are extending it to our community, basically those in Nima, Kanda, Osu, Adabraka and its environs, it’s free. If you say you are scared and you decide to stay at home, it kills. We decided to add Hepatitis B because that one too is a major killer” She added.
GBCNews spoke to some beneficiaries of the exercise.
“I advise every woman to make it a habit of getting the breast screened, because early detection provides the medical experts the opportunity to really help if they really help identify something wrong with it”, Beneficiary, Madam Joyce Gyekye.
“I think it’s important for every man to take part, we all have breast just that our ladies their own is bigger than ours, but breast is breast and all can get diseases like cancer,” another Beneficiary
Those diagnosed with the disease were referred to the Hospital for further examination and treatment.
