First Lady Samina Alvi stresses breast cancer awareness campaign

MULTAN, Oct 28 (APP)::The first lady, Ms Samina Alvi, has stressed the need for launching a regular campaign for creating awareness about breast cancer until the disease is eliminated from the country.

Speaking at a seminar held under the auspices of the Cancer Society, Pakistan Bait-ul-Maal (PBM) and Rosche Pakistan Limited, at a local hotel here on Monday, she said that one month was not sufficient time for sensitizing general public about the disease.
She asked the Cancer Society and Nishtar Medical University (NMU) administration to extend the six-month awareness programmes to at least one year in south Punjab, adding that we need to discuss the taboo to save lives of women.

“We can save lives of women when they take precautionary measures.” Ms Alivi said and added that women were proving their skills in every filed of life.

The first lady said that founder of Pakistan, Quaid-i-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah had said that no society could make progress if women did not stand shoulder-to-shoulder with men, and it was possible only when they would be healthy.

She urged people specially women not to hide their diseases, adding that its consequences could be very serious for them.

At Shaukat Khanum hospital, girls of up to 22 years of age are seen visiting with complaints of breast cancer, she said adding that the hospital was conducting research on young women patients. Self-examination and detection of the disease at an early age can save many lives, Ms Samina Alvi added.

She asked the audience to pledge that they would spare 5 minutes in a month for examination of their bodies in addition to spreading the message about breast cancer among 10 women including maids and others.

The first lady appreciated the services of PBM for its proactive role against breast cancer, adding that if one works honestly for a cause, various philanthropists extend financial resources to him.

Ms Alvi said that the turning of buildings to pink colour was a food-for-thought for everyone.

Addressing the seminar, PBM Managing Director Aun Abbas Bappi shed light on a number of steps he had taken for breast cancer treatment and awareness programmes. He said that the PBM had spent Rs680 million on 7,123 patients in 2018, which was the highest figure during the last five years.

He also read a message of Prime Minister Imran Khan about breast cancer awareness and treatment.

Earlier, Nishatr Medical University Vice Chancellor Dr Mustafa Kamal Pasha said that Pakistan was at top of the list in South East Asian countries as far as prevalence of breast cancer was concerned.

Pro VC NMU and head of Cancer Department, Dr Ahmed Ijaz Masood briefed the audience about breast cancer, saying that it was leading cause of death in women.
Parliamentarians, a large number of medics, VCs, PTI local leadership and women attended the seminar.