October being the Breast Cancer awareness month, HCG – The Specialist in Cancer Care launched their initiative called “Love Your Breast or Lose Your Breast” along with the Bengaluru City Police and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to spread awareness on early diagnosis of cancer and the environmental hazards of garbage dumps with the launch of free breast screening program by HCG for all the Paurakarmikas of BBMP and also for the women officers with Karnataka Police.
Breast cancer awareness month is an annual international health campaign observed every October to increase awareness of the disease and helps to increase attention and support for the awareness, early detection and treatment as well as palliative care of this disease.
According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), 1 out of 22 urban Indian women is at the risk of developing breast cancer. As per Population Based Cancer Registry (PBCR), about 27.3% cases of breast cancer are registered every year in Bangalore. Research also shows that there are about 36.6 new cases of Breast cancer in Bangalore for every one lakh population.
In order to spread the awareness about breast cancer, HCG has been consistently creating campaigns, last year being with the transgender community of Bangalore, which won many industry awards.
Research has been reported to understand possible environmental influences on breast cancer risk as Phthalates, a group of endocrine-disrupting chemicals which is commonly used to render plastics soft and flexible, when exposed increases the chance of breast cancer. Exposure to phthalates has been associated with a number of adverse health outcomes amongst men and women. Few studies have, however, investigated the health effects of these widely used chemicals in women.
Present at the conference, Dr. Nalini Rao – Consultant - Radiation Oncology said, “There have been comprehensive reports on environmental exposures linked to increased breast cancer risk. One such group of compounds is known as Phthalates and is used in a wide variety of common products including plastics, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, baby care products, cleaning materials and insecticides. Phthalates are classified as “Endocrine disruptors” and have been significantly linked to breast cancer in premenopausal women. They have also been linked birth defects, asthma, neurodevelopmental problems in newborns, fertility issues and obesity.”
Mr. Manjunath Reddy – Hon’ble Mayor – BBMP said, “I feel that the environmental factors have been largely ignored all these years as a possible risk factor for breast cancer and there could be complex reasons for it. I would like to urge both urban and rural communities to come together to share this awareness on the burden of exposure to toxic materials and lead a quality life.”
Breast Cancer Survivor, Ms. Vandana Ramnane said, “I think it’s high time that the risk factors for breast cancer on environmental hazards should be taken seriously, and I urge everyone to get tested at the right time.”
Along with the screening program, HCG also created ground activation across Garuda Mall, Gopalan Mall (Bannerghatta Road) and Elements Mall (Nagavara Junction) surrounding the breast cancer awareness campaign called – ‘Myth Busters’. During the activation, participants are invited to bursts balloons, which exposes myths surrounding breast cancer. Those who burst the most number of balloons not only have the chance of winning free goodies but also get a free breast cancer screening coupon.
About HCG Enterprise:
Health Care Global Enterprises Ltd (HCG) headquartered in Bangalore is Asia's Largest Cancer Care Network. It has redefined the future of healthcare in India by designing, building and managing centers with a committed vision. The vision of HCG is to make high quality healthcare accessible to all by adopting global innovations.
Photo Caption: Hon'ble Mayor Of Bengaluru Mr. Manjunath Reddy along with Dr. Nalini Rao, Dr. KS Gopinath and Dr. Govind Babu at the Breast Cancer Awareness Press Conference
Volunteers interact with participants at the Myth Buster activation for Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign
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