KARACHI - Early diagnosis of cancer disease provides 90 percent recovery chance with less financial burden and minimum mental stress on the patient and the family. Early diagnosis is key to recovery as cancer is not incurable disease. Also, it is wrongly portrayed that radiation to a patient and medicine add to this disease. This was propagated by health experts at an awareness seminar on cancer, particularly breast cancer which was rapidly spreading in the world. The seminar held at Atomic Energy Medical Centre, Karachi was a part of series of awareness activities being conducted by Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission at its nineteen health facilities in various cities and towns of the country offering international standard diagnosis and treatment to at least one million cancer patients every year. A large number of women participated in the seminar who were briefed on the risks of cancer, particularly breast cancer, and the preventive measures needed. At the top was self assessment, followed with a detailed check up by a qualified doctor after every one year when a women crosses the age of twenty. Senior breast surgeon Dr Omema Saleem said that early diagnosis of cancer was very important for its treatment. “If it is diagnosed early, the chances of recovery increased to 90 percent,” she added. PAEC’s Spokesperson Shahid Riaz Khan said that there was a need to spread more awareness about cancer diagnosis and give people a hope for its treatment. He mentioned that awareness campaign on cancer continued throughout the year; however, the month of October was dedicated to spread awareness on breast cancer. He urged media to play its important role in dissemination of information about cancer disease. Director of AEMC-Karachi Dr Hina Hashmi highlighted the importance of the awareness campaign and advised the audience to share this information with their families and other people around them. She said 55,000 to 60,000 cancer patients visited AEMC every year and the recovery rate was very encouraging. Female doctors and nurses were available at the centre. She pleaded that women cancer patients should not avoid from going through mammography process as it is simply X-ray of breast. Even chemotherapy had proved very helpful in containing cancer. 

“After some period, every thing goes fine including hair loss is recovered,” she added.