To commemorate Breast Cancer Awareness month referred to as Pink October, a female health-centred organisation, Qunita Health, is set to organise a free screening for women.
The organisation, in partnership with the Association of Resident Doctors at the Federal Medical Centre, Abeokuta, will on October 15, conduct a clinical breast examination with high-powered tech devices to detect the early stages of breast cancer to its attendees.
The group’s Founder, Dr Adewumi Babatunde, in a statement on Thursday said. “Some people don’t notice any sign of breast cancer at all, that is why routine mammograms are so important. We will be doing a clinical breast examination, as well as using a high-tech handheld device to detect the early stages of cancer.
He listed some of the early signs of breast cancer as “a change in the size, shape or contour of the breast, a mass or lump, which may feel as small as a pea, a lump or thickening in or near your breast or in your underarm that persists through your menstrual cycle, a change in the look or feel of your skin on your breast or nipple (dimpled, puckered, scaly or inflamed), redness of your skin on your breast or nipple, an area that’s distinctly different from any other area on either breast, a marble-like hardened area under your skin, a blood-stained or clear fluid discharge from your nipple.”
The founder further stated that there was a high incidence of breast cancer in Nigeria and studies had shown that the majority of Nigerian women, both in rural and urban areas, possess little or no knowledge about risk factors and symptoms of the disease.
He added that hesitation in seeking healthcare, religious, economic and socio-cultural factors had been shown to play a part in women’s attitude towards the disease.
He urged women to engage in frequent self-breast examinations and screening.
