KUCHING: At least one person a day will be diagnosed with breast cancer in Sarawak, said Welfare, Community Wellbeing, Women, Family and Childhood Development Minister Datuk Sri Fatimah Abdullah.
According to her, over 5,000 cancer cases are recorded each year and out of that number, 500 to 600 of them are breast cancer.
She further explained that more than 50 percent of these patients were diagnosed with Stage 3 or State 4 cancer, which meant that the cancer has already spread.
This was said during the 25th anniversary celebration of the Sarawak Breast Cancer Support Group (SBCSG) that was held here, recently.
Fatimah then said that cancer is a major disease not only in Malaysia, but also throughout the world.
“Cancer has been listed as one of the top five causes of death in the world and in Malaysia, it is the third leading cause of death,” she said.
Therefore, she urged women to be aware of the changes in their bodies which included changes to their breasts.
She said women should take it upon themselves to perform breast self-examinations on a regular basis to be familiar with the look, feel and shape of their breasts, which could be helpful should they detect anything out of the ordinary.
“Early detection is vital in preventing deaths because when it is detected early, chances of survival are high as it has not spread yet and treatment will be more effective,” she said.
She added that women who were at high risk of breast cancer start getting yearly mammograms once they reach the age of 45, but they also have the option to do so once they are 40 years old.
At the same time, she also said that women aged 50 and above are advised to get mammograms every two years or to continue on with their yearly screenings.
“I cannot stress how important it is to detect cancer while it’s still in its early stage as the chance of being treated is very high.
“This message must be spread to all women so that they will do regular screenings through physical examinations, ultrasounds or mammograms,” she said, adding that practicing a healthy lifestyle is also one of the ways to prevent cancer.
Also present were SBCSG advisor Datu Dr Zulkifli Jantan and SBCSG president Datin Juriah Sulehan.
