Breast cancer - a taboo for most women in Pakistan

Disease has high incidence, low recovery rate in the country, say health experts

Breast cancer, which has high incidence and low recovery rates in Pakistan, is a taboo for most women in the country, noted health experts during a webinar organised in relevance to breast cancer awareness on Thursday.

“Most women are scared of breast cancer,” said Dr Omaima Saleem, an assistant professor at Dow International Medical College.

She outlined financial issues, the painful process of treatment and diagnosis, fear of embarrassment, absence of symptoms and lack of awareness, among other factors, as reasons that led to this response to the disease and, subsequently, delayed diagnosis. 

Pointing out that the incidence of breast cancer was high in Pakistan, she compared the incidence rate of the country with those of neighbouring India and Afghanistan.

While 18.4 women per 100,000 females are diagnosed with the disease in Afghanistan and 13.4 per 100,000 in India, breast cancer is detected in 23.2 per 100,000 women in Pakistan, she said.

The doctor stressed the need for early diagnosis to beat the disease.

It was also highlight that every eighth woman is Pakistan has breast cancer, with a recovery rate of just 40 per cent, like most low-income countries. In comparison, the recovery rate in middle-high income countries stands at 60 per cent, and in developed nations at 80 per cent.

Health experts ascribed the low recovery rate primarily to the lack of awareness. Breast cancer is a treatable disease and its timely diagnosis makes the treatment easier, they explained.

“Early diagnosis can prevent a number of complications [from occurring],” Dr Ruth Pfau Civil Hospital’s breast cancer unit head Dr Farhat Jalil, adding that women, from the age of 20, should regularly self-examine their bodies and those above 40 may should undergo mammographic examinations. 

Breast cancer is spreading rapidly in Pakistan and there is a need to raise awareness about it, emphasised Dr Shaista Masood Khan, a surgeon at Aga Khan University Hospital.

The webinar was jointly organised by the Dow University of Health Sciences, Pink Ribbon Youth Awareness Programme and Higher Education Commission.