Participants of a global conference on breast cancer, organized by King Abdul Aziz Medical City National Guard here, called for more awareness campaigns which focus on the importance of early detection of the disease. “Women should regularly get their Vitamin D levels checked because Arab women usually suffer from a shortage of this vitamin due to a lack of exposure to the sun,” said participants. Dr. Umm Al-Khair Abdullah Abu Al-Khair, Chairwoman of the Adult Oncology Department at King Abdul Aziz Medical City (KAAMC), said that 70 percent of breast cancer cases are detected and diagnosed at a very early stage in Europe. “Europe has a low mortality rate in cases of breast cancer while we in the Kingdom have a higher rate because most cases here are detected in the advanced stage,” she said. Dr. Abu Al-Khair said the chances of recovery can reach as high as 98 percent if the cancer is detected early. “The later it is detected, the less the chances of recovery are,” she added. She called upon women over 40 to undergo the mammogram test, especially if they have a history of breast cancer in the family. Dr. Sami Al-Khateeb, Oncology Consultant, Secretary General of the Arab Medical Association Against Cancer and Chairman of the Jordanian Oncology Society, said women need not take medications to protect themselves against cancer. “We prefer that women eat natural food, follow a regular diet and exercise. This should be enough to prevent cancer,” he said. He called upon women to learn how to perform a breast self-exam pointing out that 80 percent of masses detected in the breast are benign. Dr. Miteb Al-Fehaidi, Breast Cancer Consultant at KAAMC, talked about a paper which focused on women in the advanced stage of the disease and how hormonal treatment increases the chances of living longer. Dr. Naji Al-Sagheer, Professor of Cancer Diseases at the American University of Beirut, focused on the importance of using bone-strengthening medications with hormone treatment for women who get breast cancer before menopause. When the cancer is removed, women receive hormonal treatment and radiology sessions, but they do not need to have chemotherapy, he explained. Dr. Sana Al-Sukhun, Hematology and Oncology Consultant, said that women with breast cancer should undergo chemotherapy before surgical intervention if the cancer is in an advanced stage. “Chemotherapy helps doctors discover how responsive the case is to the treatment. If the patient responds to the treatment and the mass becomes smaller, the doctor will continue this method and there will not be any need to remove the cancerous breast, only the mass will be removed,” he said. __
