Let's fight, Not fright

By Michelle S. Aulakh

Has anyone ever asked you whether you have ever gone for a breast cancer checkup?

Sounds a bit odd doesn’t it? Well it shouldn’t.

Imagine if you ask your parents or your friend or relatives or just any other person for a checkup, what reaction do you think you’ll get?

I’m pretty sure you’ll get a confused reaction. Especially from the males.

Breast cancer is still not a normalized topic in our daily lives. Talking about breasts in general is in itself still considered a taboo in many countries. People feel oddly uncomfortable talking about it.

Now the question arises WHY? Why are people still embarrassed and afraid to talk about breast cancer?

Well it's simply because of the lack of awareness and acceptance.

With this I remember Nathaniel Branden, a Canadian-American psychotherapist, saying “The first step toward change is awareness, the second step is acceptance”

October is known to be the month for the awareness of breast cancer.

Breast cancer is a disease in which the cells of the breast proliferate uncontrollably. There are several types of breast cancer. The kind is determined by which cells in the breast develop into cancer.

Breast cancer can develop in a variety of locations within the breast. A breast is composed of three major components: lobules, ducts, and connective tissue. The glands that generate milk are known as lobules. Ducts are tubes that transport milk to the nipple. The connective tissue (fibrous and fatty tissue) surrounds and binds everything together. The majority of breast cancers start in the ducts or lobules.

Breast cancer can spread outside of the breast via blood and lymph arteries. Breast cancer is considered to have metastasized when it spreads to other regions of the body.

One of the biggest misconceptions people have is that breast cancer is something that can only happen to women. But this is not true. Breast cancer is not gender biased. It can develop in all genders.

Breast cancer in males, albeit at a tenth of the rate that it occurs in women.

Unfortunately, the risk of breast cancer appears to rise with age. According to the National Cancer Institute's Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) Program, women are diagnosed with breast cancer at the following rates:

• 0.44 percent (1 in 227) by age 30

• 1.47 percent (1 in 68) by age 40

• 2.38 percent (1 in 42) by the age of 50.

• 3.56 percent (1 in 28) by the age of 60.

• 3.82 percent (1 in 26) by the age of 70.

Additional characteristics that increase your risk include:

• Dense breast tissue

• Body mass index

• Race and ethnicity

• Personal well-being

• Ancestral history

• Mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes

A breast cancer diagnosis leaves you with questions, decisions, and anxiety.

To be honest it is nothing to be ashamed of. As I said earlier Acceptance is the second step towards change and healing. You should never lose the HOPE in you.

One should not be ashamed but instead should face the cancer with power and courage.

Last month we, at Girl Up Mukti, conducted a webinar on breast cancer awareness by Dr. Lopamudra Das Roy. She is the founder and president of Breast Cancer Hub. Through that webinar I gained a lot of knowledge about breast cancer. I got to hear about so many stories of different men and women across the globe. Their journey through this vicious cancer.

One of the things I personally liked and also want you guys to know is about the Breast Self Exam Card for Her & Him. It is available in 24 languages (www.breastcancerhub.org/news-2/self-breast-exam-card) here is the link for the same which you can download in your preferable language. You can easily check whether or not you have breast cancer from the convenience of your home.

With this, all I would like to say is that awareness is very important for early detection of this cancer.

With increased awareness of breast cancer and its risk factors, cases can be diagnosed earlier or possibly even prevented.

“Whether you’re a mother or father, or a husband or a son, or a niece or a nephew or uncle, breast cancer doesn’t discriminate.”