Determined to tackle the menace of breast and cervical cancer from its root, Medical Women Association of Nigeria, MWAN, Edo State, has
embarked on a free breast and cervical screening for women as part of an awareness campaign to promote the early detection and treatment of breast and cervical cancer.
The two-day free screening of breast and cervical cancer exercise was flagged off by the Edo State chapter President of the MWAN, Dr. Ehi Isa and Dr. Adesuwa Urhoghide-Edigin (Immediate Past President).
The flag-off ceremony took place on Wednesday, May 24th, at the Doctors House, Ugbowo, Benin City, in honour of Dr. Clara Akele, the former Edo State MWAN President, now the National President of the body.
More than one hundred and twenty women from all walks of life were attracted to the two-day exercise which featured free breast screening and cervical examination, health talks on mammography as well as counseling.
MWAN Edo State President, Dr. Isa, said the free breast cancer screening will become a continuous exercise but admonished women to ensure they check their status quarterly to avoid the unpleasant experiences that come with full-blown breast cancer.
She further opined that the essence of regular screening is to detect its symptoms early enough, stressing breast cancer is curable if it is detected early and treated accordingly.
In her address, the Chief Medical Officer of the Health Services Department of the University of Benin, Dr. Toyin Fabooya, urged women to endeavour to undergo regular PAP smears once every year to ensure early detection, adding that advanced cervical cancer can cause bleeding or abnormal discharges in women.
She said, “We are here to educate our women between the ages of twenty-one and sixty-five years about how to examine their breasts and also screen them for cervical cancer legions. These legions may become full-blown in five to ten years if undetected on time and may lead to cervical cancer.”
Some of the participants who thronged the venue of the two-day exercise hailed the MWAN Edo State effort to nourish as well as boost the campaign to make women aware of the perils of breast cancer.
They added that the two-days exercise and the health talks by the various experts opened their eyes to the imperatives of regular checkups to avoid the unpleasant consequences of breast cancer.
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