Health

Adopt Breast Self- Examination Habit To Ensure Early Detection – Healthcare Practitioners

The general public especially women has been advised to adopt the habit of self-examining their breasts to ensure early detection of breast cancer, and also by engaging in conversations with their doctors often.

Healthcare Practitioners gave this salient advice at a virtual meeting held by Pfizer, one of the world’s top biopharmaceutical corporations, on Friday, October 2022.

Healthcare practitioners were also challenged to use technology in their respective approvals in order to have open interactions with patients and help them.

The World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer, Global Cancer Observatory (GLOBACAN), reported 28,380 and 4,482 new cases of breast cancer in Nigeria and Ghana, respectively, in 2020, according to a statement released by Pfizer on October 19, 2022, to commemorate this year’s Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The prevalence of breast cancer was the preoccupation of Pfizer’s virtual Media Roundtable to commemorate Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

According to Medical Director East & Anglo West Africa Kodjo Soroh, Oncology remains a key therapeutic field for Pfizer in which they are working to deliver medical breakthroughs that have the potential to change patients’ lives across the region significantly.

“And we are proud of these achievements, and we thank our media members, colleagues, HCPs, and everyone for this event,” he noted.

Consultant Clinical and Radiation Oncologist, NSIA-LUTH Cancer Center, Lagos University Teaching Hospital, Lagos, Nigeria Dr. Adewumi Alabi, also stated that the importance of clinical research in breast cancer care cannot be overemphasized.

These forums are critical as they allow us to share our best insights and findings that can support patients in winning the battle against cancer.

“Breast cancer itself is one of the deadliest diseases with a high prevalence in the area. On a positive note, he disclosed that we now have evidence-based updates and real-world data showing the efficacy of prescriptions in managing HR+ HER2- mBC patients,” he disclosed.

Dr. Joel Yarney, Consultant (Radiotherapy and Oncology) and Director National Centre for Radiotherapy Oncology & Nuclear Medicine, Korle-bu Teaching Hospital, stated that the breast cancer community has already seen the revolutionary influence of science on breast cancer.

While we’ve made a meaningful change for those living with this disease, our work is far from finished. It is crucial for patients who have been diagnosed with breast cancer or even metastatic breast cancer to have the right information and expectations.

According to him, it is their responsibility to encourage patients to have open conversations with their healthcare teams in order to understand how they can be supported and participate in their own caretaking an active role in their treatment can help them feel empowered in making the best decisions for themselves.

For Pfizer, Breast Cancer Awareness Month is more than just one month a year. It’s an opportunity to reaffirm its commitment to changing the lives of people with breast cancer for the better – from treatment to helping to remove barriers to equitable care and beyond.

Cancer care is driven by the hope to move forward — powered by everything and everyone around you. Beginning with each individual’s decision and actions, their community of friends, families, and advocates, and the scientists and researchers who dedicate their lives to developing new treatments.

Pfizer has supported patients and the breast cancer community for more than 20 years and our goals are clear: powering more treatment options, and more breakthroughs, for everyone.

Source: Isaac Kofi Dzokpo