Jamilah urges fellow women never to take self-exam and mammogram screenings for granted
Jamilah puts make-up on a participant of the Pink Ribbon High Tea on Breast Cancer Awareness themed ‘Looking Good, Feeling Good’. Fatimah is at second left, while Sharifah Hasidah is at fourth left. — Photo by Jeffery Mostapa
KUCHING: Women should conduct breast self-examination monthly and go for mammogram checks every three years as part of efforts to detect and treat breast cancer at an early stage.
The Chief Minister’s wife, Datin Patinggi Datuk Jamilah Anu, said the success rate of identifying breast cancer at early stages via mammograms was between 90 and 95 per cent.
Apart from that, she believed by undertaking these early detection exercises, the mortality rate of women aged 50 and above – those in the high-risk group of contracting breast cancer – could be reduced to 40 per cent.
“I would also like to tell men to encourage their wives, sisters or fiancées to go for check-ups on breast cancer. Don’t take this for granted.
“Once you find anything unusual, do not waste any time – go make an appointment with the doctor,” she said at Pink Ribbon High Tea on Breast Cancer Awareness here yesterday.
According to World Health Organisation, breast cancer remains the top and most common cancer among women worldwide, with the majority of cases being diagnosed in late stages.
Jamilah noted that under Budget 2015, tabled recently by Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak, there was a specific allocation for women to undergo free mammogram screening.
“Thus, there is no excuse not to go,” she stressed.
Earlier, Pink Ribbon Support Group president Suriani Rapaiee said most women would go to the doctors only after having Stage Two or Three of the cancer due to their severe lack of awareness of early detection.
“If detected early, the treatment cost will be lower and many lives would be saved.
“Thus, the group has been organising outreach programmes in villages to promote and raise awareness of the importance of breast self-exam. We also plan to organise it in Sibu, Miri and Bintulu next year.
“Moreover, we hope to raise funds for next year so that we would have our own centre to hold activities,” she said, adding that the group had been making prosthesis breasts for cancer survivors.
“The prostheses are distributed to hospitals for free.”
Also present at the high tea were Welfare, Women and Family Development Minister Datuk Fatimah Abdullah and Samariang assemblywoman Sharifah Hasidah Sayeed Aman Ghazali.