Dr Mrs Beatrice Wiafe Addai, President of Breast Care International (BCI), has called for stronger partnerships and collaboration to create the expected awareness on breast and other cancers in the country.
She said the breast cancer disease and its attendant fatalities demanded concerted efforts by individuals, organisations and government to aid early detection and treatment.
Dr Wiafe Addai said this when he met a couple from Barcelona, Spain, who are in the country to find out more about the activities of the BCI at the Peace and Love Hospital, Oduom, Kumasi.
The Spanish couple, Claudia Maccioni, a breast cancer survivor, and her husband Jose Ramon Puig, both journalists, travelled on land from Barcelona through Niger, Mali, Senegal, Gambia and Burkina Faso to Ghana.
They had pledged to support breast cancer awareness and treatment in Ghana and had already raised US$13,600.00 in fundraising and sponsorships to support activities of the BCI.
Dr Wiafe Addai noted that many women continued to die from the disease due to ignorance, misconception and stigmatisation.
The cost factor, bad treatment and lack of support are also contributing to the high rate of fatality.
She said whilst the fight against communicable diseases like HIV, Tuberculosis, malaria and others were receiving substantial financial push by government and other organisations, the same could not be said of the cancers.
Dr Wiafe Addai, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Peace and Love Hospital, said BCI had embarked on a sustained awareness creation to assist to prevent needless deaths.
Claudia Maccioni said she had decided to dedicate her life towards fighting the disease, especially in Africa.
She came to know of the activities of the BCI through the internet and moved to establish contacts with the Chief Executive to identify areas where she and the husband could be of help. GNA
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