Doctor clears misconceptions on breast cancer

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, August 5

During an awareness programme, Dr Amit Dhiman at Deep Hospital said, “Breast cancer is a malignant (cancer) tumour that starts in the cells of the breast. It’s a scary fact that breast cancer is rapidly increasing among women in India and has overtaken cervix cancer. Catching cancer early can significantly boost your chances for successful treatment. Breast cancer occurs when abnormal cells grow and invade healthy tissue in the body, forming a lump or a mass called a tumour.”

Pink balloons were also released on the occasion. Giving more information Dr Dhiman said it could be treated if detected early. “We are taking the initiative to make women aware of why they should lead a healthy lifestyle and make them aware of preventive and diagnostic measures that can be taken for the same.”

There are still prevalent misconceptions in society that cancer is incurable and patients don’t live a normal lifestyle after treatment. New techniques are now available, which have made of the treatment of breast cancer possible and women have taken benefit of the same. The only issue remaining now is to make women aware of the importance of early detection of the disease so that it can be treated effectively.

Women over the age of 40 years should absolutely get an X- ray done of their breasts, the technique also known as mammography. It is a very simple non-invasive test and costs just around Rs 1,600– 2,000, he said.

One reason for breast cancer is opting for delayed pregnancies among couples in today’s life. Increased reluctance to breast feeding after delivery is also becoming a major cause of the disease. There is a general misconception that breast feeding leads to sagging of breasts, which is not entirely true. Women can also do a self test and if they find any lump or any hard area, they should immediately consult a cancer specialist as detection of breast cancer in early stages if curable, he said.