Anglican Church holds seminar on breast cancer

Published in the Daily Graphic on 28/072010, pg 23

Story: Matilda Attram
ACCORDING to health experts women who were diagnosed with breast cancer and who required surgery to remove the affected breast (mastectomy) experienced fear, anger, depression, anxiety and a sense of helplessness.
Most of the patients who have difficulty bearing the cost of surgery and treatment become stressed up and, therefore, need a lot of counselling and other support.
The word ‘cancer’ conjures up deep fears of a silent killer that creeps up on a patient without warning. It evokes such desperation that it has become a metaphor for grief and pain, a scourge that strains intellectual, social and emotional resources.
Statistics from the World Health Organisation (WHO) indicate that there are over 20 million people living with cancer in the world today, with the majority in the developing world.
According to medical experts, cancer, which was the term used for diseases in which abnormal cells divided without control and invaded other tissues, was one of the killer diseases among both men and women. Roughly 70 per cent of women diagnosed with breast cancer had no identifiable risk factors for the disease.
Doctors contend that irrespective of the type of cancer a patient develops, he or she may need one of the following processes — surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and hormonal therapy — pointing out that usually patients who have prostrate and breast cancers go through hormonal therapy.
To raise awareness of the suffering caused by breast cancer and help survivors to access the best possible treatment and care, the Anglican Youth People’s Association (AYPA) of the All Saints Anglican Church last Saturday organised a women’s seminar to educate women on the need to prevent the disease.
The seminar which was based on the theme "The Total Woman for Christian Leadership" was also aimed at training women, both young and old in becoming responsible Christian wives.
Speaking at the seminar in Accra, the Director for PathoLab Medical Laboratory in Accra, Mrs Elizabeth Irene Baitie, described breast cancer as a leading disease that killed most women.
According to her, each cancer was perceived to first start from one abnormal cell. What seems to happen is that certain vital genes which control how cells divide and multiply are damaged or altered. This makes the cell abnormal. If the abnormal cell survives, it may multiply “out of control” into a malignant tumour, which consists of cancer cells that have the ability to spread beyond the original area.
She said cancer affected various parts of the body, which resulted in various types of cancers, "each with its own name and its treatment".
She mentioned others like the lung, stomach, skin, cervical, Ovarian and prostrate cancers.
She pointed out that cancer could be cured when it was detected early, stressing that cancers needed multi-disciplinary treatment with various specialists. However, if left untreated, it may spread and destroy surrounding tissues. Sometimes, cells do break away from the original cancer. They may spread to other organs in the body through the bloodstream or lymphatic system.
She advised that about 40 per cent of breast cancer cases could be prevented if women catered for their diets, kept within healthy weight limits, limited the consumption of alcohol and exercised regularly.
Mrs Baitie also urged women to report to their health specialists anytime they encountered abnormalities in and around their breast tissues.
In a statement, the Archdeacon of the Accra North Anglican Arcdeacory, Ven Joseph Lankwei Lamptey, encouraged participants to be submissive to their partners as a means of building a Christian home.