HYDERABAD : Thousands of denizens on Sunday participated in the Pink Ribbon breast cancer walk to raise awareness for early detection of breast cancer that affects more than 1.3 lakh women in the country each year.
The Pink Ribbon walk was held at KBR Park and saw nearly 3,000 people participate, including breast cancer survivors. It was organised by UBF and KIMS-USHALAKSHMI Centre for Breast Diseases in association with The Association of Breast Surgeons of India (ABSI). Noted personalities including actor Rana Daggubati and Nizamabad MP K. Kavitha participated.
“Breast cancer awareness has increased in recent years, evinced from the fact that it is being talked about and patients are able to face the realities of treatment. Earlier, it was a taboo subject to even discuss,” P. Raghu Ram, ABSI’s resident elect told The Hindu . Dr. Raghu Ram said India should develop a legislation to ensure maintenance of cancer registries. “Only a few cities have cancer registries. Andhra Pradesh and Telangana don’t have registries. Thus it is difficult to understand vital statistics like case incidence,” he said. He, however, pointed out that an increasing number of women being detected in the city were those aged between 20 and 50. “In the west, most cases of breast cancer are detected in women over 50 years. In India, younger women are being detected. We need compulsory screening for women over 40 years,” Dr. Raghu Ram said.
