Edo State MWAN Offers Free Breast, Cervical Cancer Screening For Women
By Simeon OSAJIE
As part of its awareness campaign to promote the early detection and treatment of breast and cervical cancer among women, the Edo State chapter of Medical Women Association of Nigeria, (MWAN) has embarked on free breast and cervical cancer to tackle the menace across the nooks and crannies of the state.
The two-day free screening of breast and cervical exercise was flagged off by the Edo State President of the MWAN, Dr. Ehi Isa and Dr. Adesuwa Urhoghide-Edigin, the immediate Past President of the association.
The flag-off ceremony took place on Wednesday May 24, 2023 at the Doctors House, Ugbowo, Benin City, Edo State capital, in honour of Late Dr. Clara Akele, former Edo State President, MWAN, former National President MWAN and former Board of trustees (BOT) MWAN. Late Dr. Clara Akele passed on to Glory one year ago at the age of 82.
More than one hundred and twenty women from all walks of life were attracted to the two-day exercise which featured free breast screening and cervical examination, health talks on mammography as well as counseling.
President of Edo State chapter of MWAN, Dr. Isa said the free breast cancer screening will become a continuous exercise but admonished women to ensure they check their status quarterly to avoid the unpleasant experiences that come with full-blown breast cancer.
She further opined that the essence of regular screening is to detect its symptoms early enough; stressing breast cancer is curable if it is detected early and treated accordingly.
In her address, the Chief Medical Officer of the Health Services Department of the University of Benin, Dr. Toyin Fabooya, urged women to endeavour to undergo regular PAP smears once a year to ensure early detection, adding that advanced cervical cancer can cause bleeding or abnormal discharges in women.
“We are here to educate our women between the ages of twenty-one and sixty-five years about how to examine their breasts and also screen them for cervical cancer legions. These legions may become full-blown in five to ten years if undetected on time and may lead to cervical cancer,” she said.
Some of the participants who flooded the venue of the two-day exercise hailed the Edo State MWAN’s effort to nourish as well as boost the campaign to make women aware of the perils of breast cancer.
They added that the two-days exercise and the health talks by the various experts opened their eyes to the imperatives of regular checkups to avoid the unpleasant consequences of breast cancer.
