KEPALA BATAS, Oct 26 — The Ministry of Women, Family, and Community Development is aiming for 58,500 women to benefit from the Women’s Reproductive Cancer Awareness Programme (WCaRe) this year.
National Population and Family Development Board (LPPKN) chairman Datuk Seri Rohani Abdul Karim, whose organisation is responsible for the programme, said the ministry takes the issue of women’s health very seriously, especially breast cancer, which is among their main causes of death.
Therefore, the government’s initiative in introducing the programme can help in early detection and treatment to save lives.
“Under the WCaRe campaign, women can undergo mammogram cancer screenings, which is free (for those who are eligible), while cervical cancer screenings through the HPV DNA test can be done at the 49 Nur Sejahtera clinics nationwide, including in Sabah and Sarawak.
“From January to September 30 this year, the programme recorded 489,389 mammograms carried out nationwide,” she said.
Rohani was speaking during the 2023 LPPKN Penang state-level Pink October: Awareness of Breast Cancer Month, at its Family Centre today.
Based on the 2012-2016 National Cancer Report, there has been an increase from 43.2 to 47.9 per cent in the percentage of Stage Three and Stage Four cancer cases.
The trend is worrying as there is a possibility of late cancer detection among more women, and the numbers may keep rising without an early screening initiative.
“I believe WCaRe can result in more women being aware and alert of the importance of caring for their health, particularly related to breast care.
“In addition, the government has announced a RM6 million and RM5.5 million allocations in the 2024 Budget tabled on October 13 for breast screening (mammograms) and cervical cancer screening (HPV DNA test), respectively.
“This shows the government cares about women’s health, and we are very grateful for it,” she added.
— Bernama
