Breast Cancer Awareness Month: What you need to know
Every October, National Breast Cancer Awareness Month aims to raise awareness about the deadly disease. The statistics that surround breast cancer certainly prove why raising awareness is so critical.
According to the Department of Health, breast cancer was the third leading cause of cancer death in the Philippines last year. Globally, the World Health Organization says 2.3 million women were diagnosed with the disease in 2020. Breast cancer also caused 685,000 deaths last year.
If you still lack awareness about the disease and the month that seeks to raise awareness about it, here are some facts to get you started.
1. Historical records of breast cancer go as far back as 4,200 years ago
According to a research team from the University of Jaen in Spain, evidence of breast cancer was discovered on the 4,200 year-old skeleton of an Egyptian aristocrat. Because breast cancer symptoms often include a lump in the area, even ancient civilizations have recorded mentions of it.
2. Mastectomies for being performed as far back as 548 AD
According to the book Batsheba's breast: women, cancer & history by the Johns Hopkins University Press, the court physician of the Byzantine empress Theodora, Aetios of Amida, had suggested the procedure as a possible treatment. Over the centuries, various physicians recognized it as well, but did not perform it as often due to the state of medical tools at the time.
3. Men get breast cancer too
While breast cancer is often associated with women, there are also men that get the disease. According to BreastCancer.org, 2,650 men are expected to be diagnosed with the disease in 2021, while an estimated 530 men are expected to die from it.
4. National Breast Cancer Awareness Month started in 1985
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month began as a partnership between the American Cancer Society and Imperial Chemical Industries. It advocated for mammography as an effective weapon and battling breast cancer. Since then, various foundations have been founded not just to raise awareness about breast cancer but to fund the search for a cure as well.
5. The government has a fund that helps provide cancer medicines to those in need it
The Cancer Assistance Fund or CAF was established to fulfill the goals of the National Integrated Cancer Control Act to provide financial support for those in need of cancer medicines. This year more than 3,000 breast cancer patients were given free cancer medicines, thanks to the fund.
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Meanwhile, take a look at this list of celebrities who are cancer survivors.