KABUL – As many as 20,000 people, 3,500 of them women, have been suffering from various kinds of cancer in the country, an official said on Tuesday.
The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) has launched a public awareness campaign aimed at prevention and control of breast cancer across the country.
The awareness drive was set to be carried out at governmental organisations, schools, universities in capital Kabul and provinces of the country.
Public Health Minister Dr. Ferozuddin Feroz at the inaugural ceremony of the campaign said over the past two years the ministry had established three centres for diagnosis and treatment of cancer in Kabul and Herat provinces in order to reduce and cure breast cancer.
He said these centres offered free diagnosis and treatment services to people. Feroz called the breast cancer diseases as a health challenge in the country, saying currently about 20,000 cancer patients, including 3,500 women suffering from breast cancer across the country.
Nabila Saleh, deputy minister of women affairs, also spoke on the occasion, saying here ministry was mulling over to conduct similar public awareness campaign with regard to reducing the disease in capital and provinces of the country.
According to health experts, in case of early diagnosis of the breast cancer, nearly 90 percent of it could be cured and if women felt pain in the breasts, they should refer to a doctor or health centre as soon as possible.
Breast cancer starts when cells in the breast begin to grow out of control. These cells usually form a tumor that can often be seen on an x-ray or felt as a lump. The tumor is malignant (cancer) if the cells can grow into (invade) surrounding tissues or spread (metastasize) to distant areas of the body. (Pajhwok)