Abstract
Objectives:Pakistani female population has the highest incidence of Breast cancer among the women belonging to all other Asian countries. This contributed to 28.7% of all new cases of malignancies in 2020 and is also the cause of uppermost cancer mortality in Pakistani females. The number of deaths can be reduced by promoting breast cancer screening, according to recommended programs for high-risk populations.Methods:In order to encourage breast self-examination in women, 12 Breast Cancer Awareness Clinics were set up in Gynecology and Obstetrics outdoor, Zubaida Bani Wing, Fazle Omar Hospital, Chenab Nagar, Pakistan, from September 2019 to February 2020. A total of 238 women with a mean of 29.97±8.9 years were examined and trained to perform the breast self-examination.Results:Around 41% of 222 valid responded women reported that they had knowledge that breast cancer is the major threat to their health in Pakistan. Only 20% were aware of breast cancer screening but poor cognizance about the recommendations for Pakistani women. Knowledge about Breast Self-Examination was recorded in 15 %, whereas only 5.4 % of all the women included in the present study reported to practice it. Moreover, eighty-six percent of the respondents were reported to be hesitant to visit the male doctor. Three cases of most suspected malignancies were referred to specialist consultants and few cases were endorsed for immediate mammograms.Conclusion:Setting up breast awareness and screening clinics at gynecology outdoors with trained female assistants can be effective in promoting Breast Self-Examination and elaborating screening programs countywide to obtain long term benefits in a high-risk population of Pakistan.
Highlights
Among the rest of Asian countries, highest incident of age adjusted breast carcinoma have been observed in Pakistani female population.[1]
Twelve Breast Awareness Clinics were arranged in Gynecology outdoor, during September 2019 to February, 2020 in Zubaida Bani wing Fazle Omar, Hospital Chenab Nagar, Pakistan, with the approval of administration of Hospital and institutional Ethical Review Committee (NJC-196 Dated: 19-08-2019)
Out of the total 222 valid recorded responses, 41% of the women reported that they had knowledge that breast cancer is the major threat to their health in Pakistan
Summary
Among the rest of Asian countries, highest incident of age adjusted breast carcinoma have been observed in Pakistani female population.[1]. According to the data released by Globocan in 2012, Pakistan was one of the top five countries with the highest age standardized BC mortality rate with 25.2 deaths per 100,000.3 Most recently, the number of new cases of BC in Pakistani female of all ages, during. In Pakistan like most other Asian countries, registries for BC cases are not properly maintained at national level, available data about the incidence and mortality rate is considered to be insufficient.[1,5]. It has been reported that 89% of BC patients presents at later stages in Pakistan, mostly due to the lack of awareness;[6] a major contributor of greater incidence to mortality ratio. The regular Breast Self-Examination (BSE) has been mentioned by various previous authors as a substantial to enable the women to notify any changes in the mammary tissues and report during clinical visits.[11,12] If performed correctly and regularly, BSE is a simple, confidential, and harmless method for self-detection of breast lumps in the early stages.[13]
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