The Barbados Cancer Society’s (BCS) Breast Screening Programme (BSP) is looking to head into secondary schools to encourage young girls to begin the vital practice of breast self-examinations.
“We are hoping to start the education programme in the schools so that young girls would know how to examine their breasts, and know what to look for, so that if anything new turns up they would be able to go seek advice,” said Chairperson of the Breast Screening Programme, Dr. Shirley Hanoman-Jhagroo.
According to her, young women from age 15 and up would be targeted within this initiative.
She outlined that while it was true that breast cancer was no respecter of persons, it had been shown over the years that it was no respecter of age either.“We used to think it was a post-menopausal women’s disease, but it definitely is not because even in Barbados we have had a girl at 18 and some in their early 20s. The one that was 18 unfortunately went undiagnosed for awhile, because no body thought it was possible when she went from doctor to doctor that it could have been cancer, but due to her foresight, after testing, she was diagnosed and treated,” she pointed out.
At the time, she was delivering remarks during the launch a week of activities to mark the tenth anniversary of the BSP.
Caribbean Programme Co-ordinator, Pan-American Health Organisation (PAHO) /World Health Organisation Dr. Ernest Pate, said that data collected over the past five years for the Caribbean indicated that even though awareness of cancer had increased within the general population, more cancers were being detected in younger individuals.
He pointed out however, in spite of this increase, mortality rates were on the decline due to improvement in diagnostic tools and overall awareness. (JMB)
