RANGPUR, Oct 21, 2022 (BSS) - Experts at a seminar have stressed on creating awareness at grassroots levels to substantially reduce the death rate of women with breast cancer in the country.
 
They made the observation at the daylong seminar on 'Breast cancer awareness and prevention' organized by The Blue Sky Charitable Foundation (BSCF) at the Rangpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry auditorium in the city on Thursday.
 
Officials of Rotary Club, Inner Wheel Club, students of different educational institutions of Rangpur and representatives of civil society participated in the seminar.
 
Chief Advisor of BSCF and Additional Tax Commissioner Ayesha Siddiqua Shelley presided over the event.
 
Tax Commissioner of Taxes Zone-Rangpur Mohammad Abul Kalam attended the seminar as the chief guest while Deputy Commissioner of Police of Dhaka Metropolitan Police Asma Siddiqua Mili spoke as a special guest.
 
Founding Chairman of the Department of Gynecology Oncology of Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University Professor Dr. Sabera Khatun, President of Rotary Club of Metropolitan Rangpur Dr. Rahima Khatun, cancer specialists Dr. Flora Shaheen Akhter, Dr. Swapan Kumar Nath and Gynecologist Dr. Samorpita Ghosh Tania presented articles in the seminar.
 
The experts said breast cancer has become a major concern worldwide.
 
In Bangladesh, 12.6 percent of women are affected by breast cancer and 70 percent of affected women are dying of breast cancer.
 
The issue of female death due to breast cancer, treatment of which is very costly, has become a national problem of the country.
 
The experts have identified the lack of awareness of patients and coming to the doctor for treatment in the third or fourth stage of cancer as major reasons causing more deaths to women with breast cancer.
 
They said BSCF has been organizing seminars and workshops on breast cancer awareness and treatment methods, leaflet distribution, breast cancer of young women and health camps to reduce breast cancer related deaths.
 
Besides, the organization is taking steps to ensure medical care, training of service providers on modern treatment, providing training in awareness raising, implementation of breast cancer awareness programmes in every district of the country.
 
The experts put special importance on creating mass public awareness about breast cancer at grassroots levels to reduce deaths of women with the disease.