Mammograms remain the most effective breast cancer detection tool, but too few women in Taiwan are heeding doctors' recommendations, the Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday, urging all women aged 45 to 59 to make use of the free mammogram screening services offered by the government.
According to the DOH, the rate of breast cancer incidence in the country increased 80 percent in the last decade. It is the leading cause of cancer and the No. 4 cause of death among Taiwanese women.
Each year, Taiwan reports approximately 7,500 new cases of breast cancers and 1,600 women die from the disease, the department said.
Since 2002, the Bureau of National Health has offered free biannual mammogram tests to women aged 50 to 59 and last year, the service was expanded to all women above 45 years old.
Starting this year, women who are immediate relatives of breast cancer patients are also entitled to the free service.
“Unfortunately, despite the department's generous offer, only 16 percent of the female population receive the life-saving test each year,” said DOH Minister Yaung Chih-liang (楊志良), adding that early detection could lead to early treatment and better chances for complete recovery.
In Taiwan, the overall breast cancer survival rate is 83 percent, lower than the 89 percent reported in the US, even though Taiwan's figures for all five phases of the cancer are higher than the US.
Yaung said the comparison shows that if detected early enough, breast cancer patients in Taiwan have a high chance of survival. However, many women were unaware of their condition until it was too late because they did not receive proper screening tests.
Bureau Director-General Chiu Shu-ti (邱淑媞) said that although regular self-examinations are crucial, they are not enough to discover subtle and potentially fatal changes in the breasts.
Chen Yun-li (陳雲麗), a 49 year-old former policewoman, said she ignored the hard lump under her right breast for more than a month before consulting a doctor and discovering she had stage-three cancer.
“Never assume just because you exercise regularly and eat healthy that you can dodge breast cancer,” said Chen, an avid marathon runner, long-distance swimmer and climber before falling ill four years ago.
She recalled the side effects she experienced during chemotherapy and radiation therapy, which she said were so painful she often cried alone in the middle of the night.
Now in remission, Chen is a strong advocate of breast cancer awareness, saying the three to five seconds of discomfort one experiences during a mammogram is worth avoiding a long painful battle against cancer.
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