Breast cancer sufferers shared their experiences yesterday about one of the most commonly occurring cancers among women today, saying that with early diagnosis, social support and a positive outlook, there is light at the end of the tunnel for the many women who suffer from this terrible disease.
According to 2002 Department of Health (DOH) statistics, aside from ranking No. 1 among the most commonly occurring forms of cancer in women, breast cancer was also one of the cancers to have seen the steepest increase in cases between 1998 and 2002, at 24.4 percent.
"In 2004, 1,339 women died of breast cancer, which accounted for 10.29 percent of all cancer cases," said Wu jun-ming (吳浚明), head of the Bureau of Health Promotion.
Lily Shen (沈臨玲), from the Taichung Kaihuai Association, a non profit organization for breast-cancer survivors, said that social support and an emotional outlet were vital.
"Many women can't seem to shake themselves out of it. They don't dare to go out. And some women have very distorted beliefs. For example, in Buddhism, some believe that cancer is a punishment for doing bad deeds in a previous life. Friends and family are very important at this time," she said.
Asked how breast cancer affects one's perception of their own femininity, she said, "Can you imagine? A woman's breasts are the ultimate symbol of her femininity. Also, when patients undergo chemotherapy, they lose their hair. It is as though they lose all that's feminine about them."
She said she dared not look in the mirror after she first had a partial mastectomy. With about a quarter of her breast removed she said that her breasts were "lopsided" and she felt "ugly."
"At this point, what is the most important are support and encouragement from your partner or spouse. They need to let you know they can overcome your physical changes and love you for who you are," she said.
Since then she has more than come to terms with her illness and said that what really matters is the spiritual being, not physical appearance.
"I agree with something a doctor once said to me, which was that if you undergo breast reconstruction it should be for yourself, not anybody else."
She advised women to "treat yourself a little bit better," saying that as a working mother, she had been burning the candle at both ends when she was diagnosed with cancer eight years ago.
She emphasized the importance of early diagnosis saying, "Women over 35 should get regular check ups. If you find a lump, go to the doctor immediately. The world isn't going to fall apart," she said.
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Taiwan's Gold Apollo Co (金阿波羅通信) said today that the pagers used in detonations in Lebanon the day before were not made by it, but by a company called BAC which has a license to use its brand. At least nine people were killed and nearly 3,000 wounded when pagers used by Hezbollah members detonated simultaneously across Lebanon yesterday. Images of destroyed pagers analyzed by Reuters showed a format and stickers on the back that were consistent with pagers made by Gold Apollo. A senior Lebanese security source told Reuters that Hezbollah had ordered 5,000 pagers from Taiwan-based Gold Apollo. "The product was not
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai